Someone To Love Us
by shake2281
Summary: Haley finally leaves an abusive boyfriend after years of being with him. She and her daughter Emily move to Tree Hill. Will she find someone to love the both of them? Pairings: Naley & Leyton (May have some R moments)
1. Default Chapter

Me & Emily

_**Floorboard is filled with baby toys  
**__**And empty coke bottles and coffee cups  
**_**_Drivin' through the rain with no radio,  
__Tryin' not to wake her up_**

Haley James was driving on the interstate. The only noise was the steady rain hitting the windshield. She didn't have the radio on because she didn't want to wake Emily up. She looked down at the floorboard on the passenger side of the car. Coke bottles and coffee cups were strewn all about, she needed the caffeine to keep herself awake so she could keep driving. Another thing she was a baby blanket. Haley looked in the rearview mirror at the brown haired, green-eyed girl sleeping in her car seat. She remembered the day she was born and was given that blanket.

**Flashback**

"Oh Connor, this is so sweet" Haley said with tears in her eyes as she looked at the baby blanket.

"My mom took my old high school and college jerseys and had them made into a blanket for Em. This way when I travel, I can still always be with her" Connor replied.

A few tears fell down Haley's cheeks and Connor leaned over and kissed her forehead.

End flashback 

_**Cell phone says low battery  
**__**God, what if I break down?**_  
_**I'm just lookin' for an exit with a lotta lights,  
**__**A safe little interstate town**_

Her cell phone beeped and she looked down at it.

"Shit! My cell phone can't die now! I'm in the middle of nowhere! What if my car breaks down? What if I catch a flat tire? I just need to find somewhere to exit. A small town that's safe" she said outloud.

_**Just a cheap hotel,  
**__**With a single bed,  
**__**And cable TV  
**__**Is good enough for me and Emily**_

"I just need to find a hotel that's cheap. It doesn't have to be the Hilton. Just something with a single bed and cable TV. As soon as I find that I'll stop."

Haley saw a sign that said there was a gas station two miles ahead so she took the exit and pulled into the gas station. As she was pumping gas a car pulled up next to her.

"Excuse me, can you please tell me where I can find a hotel?" Haley questioned the person when they got out of their car.

"Yes, there's one in the next town over. It's called Tree Hill, it's about five miles down the road. It's nothing much. They only have single beds and cable TV" the old man replied politely.

"Good enough for me and Emily."

After getting further directions from the old man and thanking him, Haley got back on the interstate.

_**Some day, when she's old enough  
**__**She's gonna start askin' questions about him.  
**__**Some kid at school brings his Dad for show and tell,  
**__**And gets her little mind a-wonderin'  
**__**"Where's my daddy? Do I have one?**_  
_**Does he not love me like you do?"  
**__**Oh, maybe I'll find someone to love the both of us,  
**__**And I'll tell her when she's old enough to know the truth**_

As Haley drove a million thoughts started running through her head.

"What am I going do when she gets older and starts school? All her friends are going have dads. Is she going to ask me where Connor is? If he loves her? What am I going to say? Maybe someday I'll find someone to love me and Emily and he can be her dad. Maybe I won't have to tell her about Connor until she's old enough to know the truth."

_**Will it break her heart?  
**__**Will she understand,  
**__**That I had to leave?  
**__**That's what was best for me and Emily**_

"Is it going to break her heart that I left her daddy? I need her to understand that I had to leave, it's what was best for the both of us. But, will she understand?" Haley thought as a lone tear ran down her cheek.

_**The house was never clean enough  
**__**His dinner never warm enough  
**__**Nothing I did was ever good enough to make him happy**_  
_**So, I guess he gave me what he thought I deserved**_

Haley looked in her rearview mirror and saw the bruises on her face, becoming lost in painful memories.

**Flashback**

Connor walked into the room and Haley got off the couch and walked over to him.

"Hey baby."

"Haley, this house is filthy. You would think you could clean a house the right way!"

" I rented your favorite movie and made your favorite dinner. Emily's at your mom's. I thought we could have a night alone" Haley said sweetly.

"Well isn't that sweet. Do you want a f ucking award or something?" Connor replied sarcastically.

Connor walked out of the living room and into their bedroom. He came out a few minutes later all dressed up.

"Where are you going?"

"Out."

"Connor, you just got home. I haven't seen you in a month" Haley said as she grabbed his arm as he was walking past her.

Connor turned around and back-handed Haley.

"Don't f ucking touch me" he shouted and then walked out of the house.

**end flashback**

_**But it would kill me if he ever raised his hand to her**_

**Flashback**

"Daddy, come play with me" Emily said as she pulled on Connor's shirt.

"Not now Em, I'm busy."

"But, daddy I want you to come play with me now" Emily whined.

"I said not now Emily! Go in your f ucking room!" Connor shouted.

Emily burst into tears.

**end flashback**

**_Big rigs are throwin' rain on my windshield,  
And I feel like they're laughin' at me  
Finally the storm is lettin' up_**  
_**And the mornin' is breakin' free  
**__**It's a brand new day  
**__**It's a second chance  
**__**Yesterday is just a memory  
**__**For me and Emily**_

Haley took the exit for Tree Hill, North Carolina. As the sun was rising she passed a place called Karen's Café.

"This is our second chance Em."

_**Floorboard is filled with baby toys  
**__**And empty coke bottles and coffee cups  
**__**At least there's one good thing he gave me  
**__**And she's starting to wake up**_

She pulled into the parking lot of the Tree Hill Hotel and turned off her car. Emily started to stir in her car seat.

"At least there's one good thing Connor gave me" Haley said aloud as she smiled at her daughter.

Please let me know what y'all think. Hate it? Like it? Any fave parts?  
Thanks,  
Crystal


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Haley had been in Tree Hill for three days but hadn't left the hotel unless she needed to. The bruises were starting to fade and she needed to look for a job. She got up, got dressed and proceeded to put make-up on to cover as much of the bruises as she could. She winced in pain as she brushed the make-up over her eye and cheeks. Connor sure knew how to cause pain. When she was done she got Emily dressed and they left the hotel. After driving around town Haley passed by Karen's Café, the place she passed on her way in to town, and saw a help wanted sign in the window. They walked into the café and were greeted by a curly-headed blonde.

"Hi, welcome to Karen's Café. How can I help you?"

"I saw the help wanted sign in the window and I wanted to apply for the job" Haley said shyly.

The blonde walked to the entrance of the kitchen.

"Karen!" she yelled.

A black haired woman came out of the kitchen wiping her hands on her apron.

"Yes dear?" she said looking at the blonde.

"This lady wants to apply for the job" the blonde replied.

"Hi. I'm Karen Roe" Karen said turning to Haley.

"Hi, I'm Haley James. Are you still looking to hire someone? I just moved here and I need a job" Haley returned.

"Yes I am still hiring. When" Karen was cut off.

"Mommy! I'm hungry!" Emily whined.

"Well hello. Who are you?" Karen questioned when she finally noticed Emily.

Emily grabbed on to Haley and hid behind her.

"This is my daughter Emily."

Karen looked down at Haley's hand and noticed she didn't have a wedding ring on. The next thing she noticed were the circles under her eyes. She could tell that Haley was stressed.

"When can you start?"

"What? Uh, whenever you need me to" Haley stuttered, surprised that she got the job so easily.

"Ok, how about now?" Karen questioned her with a smile on her face.

"Oh, I don't have anyone to watch Emily. I don't know anyone here" Haley said starting to worry that she would lose the job that she just got.

"No worries, she can stay with you."

"Really? She won't be any trouble, I promise. Just give her crayons and a paper and you won't hear a word out of her" Haley said gratefully.

"Hey, Peyton. Can you get some paper and crayons for little Emily here?" Karen called out to the blonde.

"Sure" Peyton replied walking to the back of the café.

A few minutes later Peyton returned, paper and crayons in hand.

"Here ya go sweetie" Peyton said as she bent down to Emily's level.

Emily shyly took the crayons and paper.

"What do you say Emily?" Haley prodded.

"Thank you" Emily said quietly.

Peyton stood back up and looked at Haley.

"Hi. I'm Peyton Sawyer, uh, Scott."

"Still not used to that Pey?" Karen laughed.

Haley gave Peyton and Karen a look of confusion. Upon seeing this look Karen proceeded to explain.

"She just married my son last month."

Haley was still confused.

"I thought you said your last name was Roe?"

"Oh, it is. Scott is Lucas' father's last name, we never married" Karen explained.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be nosey." Haley said feeling guilty.

"You have nothing to be sorry for!" Karen said.

"So, Haley, where are you from?" Peyton questioned.

"Uh, New York."

"Wow, long way from here." Peyton said.

"Yeah, it is."

Just then a pretty girl with black hair burst into the café with a child. She looked like she wanted to scream.

"Peyton, Karen, help me! I love Jenny but she's driving me crazy! Please help me!" the girl said in hysterics.

"Brooke what's wrong?" Karen questioned.

"I was trying to study for a major test I have tomorrow and she just would not stop running around. I mean, she was just running around the house screaming at the top of her lungs. And Jake is at a parent/teacher conference and he won't be home until four and I really need to study!" Brooke almost shouted.

"Brooke, calm down, look" Peyton said pointing to a booth in the corner.

All of the women looked to the corner and saw Jenny and Emily playing together and laughing. Haley smiled, this was the first time Emily laughed in over a week and it was good to hear the sound of her laughter again.

"Who's that little girl?" Brooke questioned.

"That's my daughter" Haley said.

"Brooke, this is Haley. I just hired her" Karen said.

"Brooke Davis, nice to meet you" Brooke chirped.

Haley was taken aback by Brooke.

"Nice to meet you too."

"So Brooke, you and Jake will be here tonight, right?" Peyton questioned.

"Aren't we always?"

"Hey, Haley, why don't you join us tonight?" Karen suggested.

"What's tonight?"

"Well, on Wednesday nights we all get together and have dinner and talk" Karen answered.

"Who's we?" Haley questioned.

"Me, Peyton, Lucas, my son, Brooke and Jake her uh…" Karen began.

"Roommate!" Brooke shouted.

Haley looked at Brooke like she was crazy.

"My fiance', Keith, my business partner, Deb, and Nathan, I never know what to call him" Karen said.

"Well, he's the ass that knocked you up then left, the got another girl pregnant's son" Brooke blurted out.

"Gotta love her ability to cram complex issues in a nutshell!" Peyton laughed.

"I'm not sure. I mean, I don't really know you all and I have Emily" Haley stated unsure of what to do.

"Oh come on Haley! Jenny will be here for Emily to play with and it'll be a great way to get to know us better and for you to make new friends" Peyton pleaded.

"Ok, I'll stay for dinner" Haley gave in.

"Yay! A new person to get to know!" Brooke said in a cheery tone.

Haley gave a half smile. Brooke really made her uncomfortable. She was too perky. Brooke left after Peyton agreed to watch Jenny so she could study. Peyton was also watching Emily so Haley could work. At first Haley was reluctant to leave her daughter with a stranger but Peyton promised she would stay in the café. Hours passed and it was closing time.

"Hey mom!" a tall blonde haired guy said as he walked in.

"Hi Lucas" Karen replied giving him a hug.

He walked over to Peyton and gave her a kiss.

"Hi babe."

"Hi Luke" Peyton replied.

Lucas turned around and saw Haley and Emily but before he could ask who they were the door opened and two people walked in.

"Ok, I know you all missed me but, I'm here now" Brooke said.

"Conceited much Brooke?" the guy with shaggy brown hair standing next to her said.

Jenny looked up when she heard the guy speak.

"Daddy!" she yelled as she ran from the corner into his arms.

"Hi princess" he said scooping her up and kissing her cheek.

"Damn, Luke, did you see that Audi RS 6 out there?" a tall guy with black hair said as he walked in.

"Hey little brother" Lucas said.

Haley stood back in the corner during all of the commotion.

"Haley, come here" Peyton called.

She reluctantly walked over to the group.

"Haley, this is Lucas, Jake Jagielski, Nathan Scott, and you already know Brooke and Jenny" Peyton said pointing everyone out.

"Hi" Jake and Lucas said in unison.

Nathan didn't say anything. He just stood there staring at Haley.

'Wow, this woman is gorgeous. Her big brown eyes are beautiful' Nathan thought to himself.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you" Haley said giving them a simple smile.

"Hello! Earth to Nate!" Brooke said waving her hand in front of his face.

"Wha- oh. Hi, nice to meet you" he stuttered.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"And this is her daughter Emily" Karen said as she walked up holding Emily.

'Woah! Hold up! She has a kid?!' Nathan thought to himself.

"Oh she's so cute" Lucas said.

"She and Jenny became friends today" Peyton said.

"Oh really? Jenny, you made a new friend?" Jake questioned.

Jenny shook her head yes and squirmed to get out of Jake's arms. Karen put Emily down and she and Jenny ran off to play in the corner with some toys Haley had gotten out of her car earlier.

"Well, why don't you all sit down and I'll start bringing the food out" Karen suggested.

"Oh, let me help you Karen" Haley said as she started to follow Karen to the kitchen.

"No, no. You get acquainted with everyone. I've got it."

A few minutes later Karen came out with food and two people.

"Look who I found" she said.

Haley looked up and saw a pretty woman with blonde hair and a rugged looking man with brown hair.

"Haley, this is my fiancé Keith and my partner and best friend Deb. Keith, Deb, this is Haley James, my new employee" Karen said.

"Hello, it's nice to meet you both" Haley said politely.

"Hi Haley" Keith said.

"Haley, it's nice to meet you" Deb said.

Lucas and Nathan pushed two tables together and everyone took their regular seats. Lucas dropped into his seat.

"Here Haley, you can sit by me" Peyton said as she pointed to the chair next to her as she sat next to Lucas.

Haley sat down next to Peyton and put Emily in the chair next to her. Emily was excited because Karen was sitting next to her. Keith sat at the head of the table. On the other side of the table Jake sat across from Lucas, Jenny sat next to him, then, it was Brooke, Nathan and Deb. Everyone started to eat. Throughout dinner there was conversation going on but, Haley just sat back quietly listening to everyone.

"So, Haley, how old are you?" Deb questioned.

"I'm twenty-one" Haley replied.

"How old is Emily?" Lucas questioned.

"She's three."

"Where are you from?" Brooke asked.

"New York."

'What's with all the questions?' Haley thought to herself.

"Mommy, I want my juice cup" Emily said.

"Em, you have juice right there on the table" Haley replied.

"No! I want my juice cup!" Emily said raising her voice.

Haley looked at her daughter and saw her yawn and rub her eyes. She was tired and cranky and Haley knew she wouldn't win this fight.

"Ok, I'll go get it" Haley said standing up.

She got her keys out and walked out to her car.

"Damn, that Audi is hers?" Lucas said in surprise.

"Hey Nate, you need a napkin?" Jake questioned as he watched Nathan staring at Haley.

"Huh, what? No. Why?" Nathan stammered as he turned his gaze from Haley to Jake.

"So you can wipe that drool from your chin, you've been drooling over her since Pey introduced you to her" Jake laughed.

"I have not!" Nathan denied.

"Oh yes you have! Don't even try to deny it!" Brooke said.

"What about your little basketball girlfriend Nate? You know, the one you're gonna lose your job over" Peyton teased.

"Plus she's what, nineteen? Come on Nate, you need to find someone else" Lucas said.

"Shut up! I'm tired of hearing s hit from all of you about Erin!" Nathan said through gritted teeth.

"Nathan James Scott! You're still seeing that little girl?" Deb questioned.

"Mom! She's not a little girl! She's nineteen!" Nathan sighed.

"Like I said, little girl" Deb reiterated.

"Oh Nate! You just got burned by your mom!" Jake laughed.

Haley walked in at this moment.

"Who's Nathan's mom?" she questioned with a confused look on her face.

"I am" Deb answered.

"Huh?"

Everyone laughed at the utter confusion written on Haley's face.

"You and Karen both have sons by the same man and you're best friends?"

"Yes. I divorced Dan when Nathan was still in high school. He moved soon after that and no one's heard from him since. But, Karen and I became friends before I divorced Dan. Keith helped us to realize that we shouldn't have a problem with each other but with his brother." Deb replied.

"His brother?" Haley questioned.

"Yes, Dan is his Keith's brother" Karen answered.

"Wow!"

"Yeah, it's a lot to take in. We're just one big messed up extended family" Brooke said jokingly.

"You're related to them too?"

"No. Jake and I are the only ones not related to them but we're like family. Lucas has been my best friend since we were five. Jake, Lucas and Nathan played basketball together and became best friends. So, we're like one big family" Brooke explained.

"Oh, ok" Haley said as she sat down trying to soak in all the new information.

Haley picked Emily up and sat her in her lap. Emily happily took the juice cup and started drinking from it.

"Do you have any brothers and sisters Haley?" Keith questioned.

"Yes. I have a sister Claire who is twenty-seven and a brother Gabe who is twenty-four" Haley divulged.

"What made you come here to Tree Hill?" Brooke questioned bluntly.

Peyton swiftly kicked Brooke under the table.

"OWW!" Brooke yelled glaring at Peyton.

"Ok, that's enough questions. We don't want to scare Haley away. Why don't we tell her a little about ourselves" Karen said.

"Well, I'm twenty-one, I go to UNC-Chapel Hill and I live with Jake and Jenny" Brooke started.

"But, we're just roommates and best friends" Jake threw out.

Haley saw the sadness in Brooke's eyes when Jake made this comment.

"I'm twenty-four and I teach History at Tree Hill High. Jenny is four" Jake said.

"Lucas is twenty-three and he's a sports writer and I'm twenty-two and I do the art work for Thud magazine" Peyton said.

"Your turn Nate" Lucas said.

"Huh? Oh, I'm twenty-three and I'm the athletic trainer for the girls basketball team at UNC-Chapel Hill."

The conversation continued for the next twenty minutes. Haley looked down and noticed that her daughter had fallen asleep in her arms. She brushed her curly blonde hair out of her face and kissed her forehead.

"Well, thank you all so much for inviting me to have dinner with you but, I need to get back to the hotel since Emily is sleeping" Haley said politely.

"Ok, it was great having you join us for dinner. I'll see you at seven tomorrow morning" Karen said.

Everyone said their goodbyes to Haley and she walked out of the café. After putting Emily in her car seat Haley got into the driver's seat. Before she could go anywhere her cell phone rang and she answered it.

"Hello."

"Where the f uck are you?" the voice on the other side of the phone shouted.

'Shit! Why didn't I look at the caller ID before I answered?' Haley chastised herself.

"Far away from you" Haley answered.

"Don't get smart with me Haley! Get your f ucking ass back home now!"

"No Connor! You will never see me or my daughter again" Haley shouted into the phone.

"Emily is my daughter too! I want you and Emily home now or so help me.." Connor started but was cut off by Haley.

"Or what? You'll find me and beat me? You've done that enough! Why don't you just leave me the f uck alone! I'm not coming back!" Haley shouted, anger evident in her voice.

"Haley, I will find you!" Connor shouted and then hung up on Haley.

Jake was standing outside the whole time Haley was on the phone. He saw her screaming and crying. He walked up to her car and knocked on her window. Haley jumped because of his actions then rolled down her window.

"Um, you left Emily's juice cup and I thought you might need it so I just wanted to bring it to you before you left. Are you ok?" Jake said, worry in his voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks" Haley said wiping away her tears trying to compose herself.

Haley took the juice cup from Jake then pulled out of the parking lot and headed to the hotel.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Where are you?"

"Well hello to you too!" Haley said into her phone.

"Why didn't you tell me you were leaving that bastard?"

"Calm down. I'm in North Carolina. And I didn't tell you because I wanted you to be able to tell the truth when you told him you didn't know where I was" Haley explained.

"You're in North Carolina? Why didn't you come stay with Callie and I?"

"Gabe, I didn't want to impose on you guys."

"Haley, you're my sister and Emily is my niece. I love you guys and so does Callie, you wouldn't have been imposing. Where exactly in North Carolina are you? I want to come see you, see for myself that you're ok" Gabe said.

"No Gabe. I don't want you taking time off of work to come see me. I'm fine, really."

"I don't have to work this weekend and neither does Callie. We are driving down there this weekend whether you like it or not" Gabe insisted.

"Fine, I'm in Tree Hill" Haley relented.

"That's only about four hours from here. We'll be there sometime tomorrow night. I'll call your cell phone so you can give me directions to where you're staying."

"Ok. I'll see you tomorrow."

"HJ?" Gabe's voice cracked "You're really ok? You promise?"

Tears came to Haley's eyes as she heard the nickname her brother had called her since they were children.

"Yeah Gabe, I promise" Haley said barely above a whisper.

Haley ended her phone call and began getting ready for work. She had to be at the café in half an hour and she needed to cover the bruises on her face that were still visible. Haley and Emily arrived promptly at seven o'clock. Karen and Haley were talking when they heard the bell ring notifying them that someone was there.

"Good morning Nathan" Karen greeted.

"Morning Karen. Oh, hey Haley. I didn't know you were working today" Nathan replied with a warm smile.

Karen rolled her eyes at Nathan. That was a load of bull because he knew Haley was working today.

"Hi Nathan" Haley replied with a shy smile.

"What can I get you this morning Nathan?" Karen questioned.

"Um, coffee and a plain bagel."

"I'll get it Karen" Haley said then busied herself with Nathan's order.

Karen looked at Nathan and watched as his eyes followed her until she was out of sight.

"What are you doing Nate?"

"What do you mean?" Nathan questioned, confusion written on his face.

"Look, I barely know Haley but I know what you're thinking. Just don't. Haley has a three year old daughter, she has a lot on her plate. Besides, aren't you dating someone? Someone you shouldn't be dating but you are?" Karen said sternly.

"I don't know what you're talking about Karen" Nathan denied.

"Sure you don't."

Haley walked back in at that minute with Nathan's coffee and bagel.

"Here you go" she said placing it in front of him.

"Hey Karen, I'm back with the supplies. Can you come help me unload them?" Deb called out from the back of the café.

"Yeah, I'm coming" Karen called out and walked to the back.

"So, Haley, how do you like Tree Hill so far?" Nathan questioned

"It's nice. Everyone I've met so far has been really nice to me" Haley replied.

After a few minutes of awkward silence Nathan decided to break it.

"Well, I'm going to go see if mom and Karen need help."

Nathan walked to the back and Haley went about helping a few customers that just walked in. When Nathan came back to the front five minutes later he saw Haley bending over wiping the counter. Her shirt was raised up slightly in the back and Nathan caught sight of a tattoo on her lower back right above her butt. Before he could make out what the tattoo was Haley reached further down the counter and her shirt rose up more and he saw two huge bruises on her back.

'What the hell? She must've have fallen' Nathan thought to himself.

Haley quickly turned around snapping Nathan out of his thoughts. Nathan quickly redirected his eyes and looked down at the floor. He walked to the other side of the counter and sat down and gave Haley a slight smile. He glanced down and saw her arms, they too had bruises on them. Haley noticed him looking at her arms and she quickly pulled her sleeves down.

'Ok, those bruises are definitely not from a fall' Nathan thought.

Nathan looked at Haley and could tell she was uncomfortable. He figured he was part of the reason she was uncomfortable so he decided to change that.

"Well, I have to get to work. I'll see you later Haley" Nathan said as he stood and walked out of the café.


	5. Chapter 5

Wow! I am so excited & just thrilled at all the replies I got! You guys are so awesome!

**treehillgirl323-** thank you for you compliment and you'll find out what the tattoo is later...lol.

**Nathan's Manna- **I'm glad you loved the last chapter!

**Caitlin( )- **I will continue this fic. I actually have a total of 10 chps. written. I'm just taking my time to post them because I have a MAJOR case of writer's block!

**jaqueline22393-** thanks for replying! It's always great to get feedback!

**xScott23x- **It so makes my day when people say they love my fic! So, thanks a million!

**Eternal Dragon101- **As I said before, I have a MAJOR case of writer's block going on so, I'm taking my time posting the chps. I already have. I've also been busy with school (it was finals week but I took my last one today! YAY!) But, I'm completely done with school on Monday (I have a make-up test, blah!) so, hopefully I'll be able to start getting some writing done. I'm so glad you enjoyed the last chapter!

**Britt(A )- **You'll get your Naley, I promise...eventually. lol

**nature-girlie-** Glad you like the fic, thanks for replying.

**clarkson04-** I'm so glad you think this is a great story! I'll try not to have my post so far & few between.

**Nathan'sRaven- **Wow! 4 replies in one day! Thanks for all the replies! I'm so glad you think my fic improves with each chapter! You'll just have to wait and see how long it takes Nate! lol.

**LPkindofLoVe-** Glad you think it's cute! I always LOVE any compliment I get!

Again, thank you ALLfor replying! No matter what the comment, it keeps me motivated to write. Just please be patient with me if I don't update soon, I've been having some physical problems lately. I hope you all enjoy this chapter! See, you didn't have to wait as long as last time! lol

Crystal

Chapter 5

There was a knock on Haley's hotel door. Haley looked at the clock, it read nine p.m. She turned off the TV, got out of the bed and walked to the door. When she opened the door a tall brown hair, green- eyed guy and a tall skinny blonde walked in. Haley closed the door behind them.

"Let me see" the guy said to Haley.

"No Gabe."

"I already see the bruises on your face, show me the rest. Now Haley Elizabeth James" Gabe demanded.

Haley had no make up on so the bruises were visible. Gabe never called her by her full name so she new he was serious about wanting to see the other bruises.

"Fine" she sighed in defeat.

She raised her shirt above her stomach and rolled up her sleeves. Callie gasped and put her hand over her mouth at the sight. Haley's arms, stomach and back were covered with purple bruises. Callie rushed over to Haley and enveloped her in a hug.

"Hales, I'm so sorry! I should've tried harder to convince you he was no good" Callie cried.

"Cal, it's not your fault" Haley said returning the hug.

"That son of a bitch! I'm gonna kill him!" Gabe said raising his voice.

"Gabe be quiet! I don't want you to wake up Emily" Haley scolded.

Gabe was furious. He couldn't understand how someone could do that to his baby sister. Haley looked into her brother's eyes and saw the tears that were threatening to spill over.

"Is there somewhere we can go to talk?" Gabe questioned.

"Yeah, we can go to the park" Haley replied.

"Callie, do you mind watching Emily so we can go to the park?" Gabe questioned as he turned to Callie.

"No, not at all. You two go, we'll be fine" Callie replied.

Gabe kissed Callie, grabbed his keys and he and Haley headed to the park. When they arrived at the park they found a picnic table to sit at. Haley fidgeted with the sleeves on her shirt, nervous about the conversation she was about to have with her brother.

"Did he hit Emily? Cause if he did you can't stop me HJ. I will get in the f ucking car and drive to New York and kill him! I will f ucking kill him!" Gabe ranted.

"Almost" Haley whispered not making eye contact with her brother.

"I want to know exactly what happened" Gabe stated while trying to remain calm.

"The day I left he got home and was in a horrible mood. He started yelling at me the minute he walked through the door" Haley recalled.

**Flashback**

"Haley! Where are you?" Connor yelled as he walked through the door.

"I'm in the kitchen" Haley called out.

Connor walked into the kitchen and saw Haley standing by the stove cooking.

"You haven't finished cooking yet? What the f uck is wrong with you?" Connor yelled.

"Baby I'm sorry. I was running errands and it took longer than I thought. Then I had to pick up Emily from her friend Tara's house and…" Haley began rambling.

"I don't want to hear it! Stop making f ucking excuses! Just f ucking finish cause I'm hungry!"

Connor started to walk out of the kitchen when Haley noticed him limping.

"Connor, what happened? Why are you limping?" she questioned with concern in her voice.

"Because I got hurt during practice. What are you? A f ucking idiot?" Connor replied viciously.

"No, I just…" Haley began but trailed off.

"Stupid bitch" Connor muttered.

Just then Emily ran in full of mud and latched on to Connor's leg. Connor winced in pain and shouted.

"Emily get the f uck off me!"

"Connor, she didn't know you got hurt" Haley stated as she walked over to her daughter who was now scared.

"Why the f uck is she covered in mud? Look, it's all over the damn floor. Get your ass in the bathroom" Connor shouted as he grabbed Emily by the arm.

Emily began to cry at this point and it just angered Connor even more. Connor raised his hand to hit her but Haley stepped in front of him. She gently pushed Emily into her room and shut the door after telling her to stay in there. As soon as she closed the door she knew what was coming. Connor looked at her with rage in his eyes and threw her up against the wall then slapped her across the face beginning the worst beating Haley ever got.

**End Flashback**

"When he was done he left. I laid on the floor for about fifteen minutes unable to move. Finally I got up, went to the bathroom, cleaned myself up then started packing. That was the last straw for me. I could take the beatings from him but I could never live with myself if I let him hit Emily" Haley finished her recount of that horrible night.

At this point Haley was crying and shaking after reliving that night. Gabe got up and walked around to the other side of the table and enveloped Haley in a hug.

"HJ I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you" Gabe whispered as tears ran down his face.

Haley and Gabe didn't notice the figure watching them in the distance.

Nathan had decided to go for a run in the park. When he arrived at the park he saw two people sitting at a picnic table. As he walked closer he noticed it was Haley and some guy.

'Is that….Haley!' Nathan thought to himself.

He walked closer but hid behind a bush so he couldn't be seen.

'Who is that guy she's with? Why does he have his arm around her? Wait is she, is she crying? She is! Why is she crying? What did that guy do to her?' Nathan thought growing concerned.

'Should I walk over there and see if she's ok? No, I don't know her well enough. She might think I'm just being nosey. She's probably fine. I'll just finish my run.'

Nathan finished his run then left the park.

The next afternoon Nathan walked into the café and saw Haley cleaning off a table. Haley turned to the door at the sound of the bell.

"Hi Nathan" she greeted.

"Hey" Nathan replied.

"Can I get you something?" Haley questioned.

"Yeah, I want a cinnamon roll" Nathan answered.

"Ok, I'll go get it for you. Be right back"

A few minutes later Haley emerged from the kitchen with Nathan's cinnamon roll. She placed it on the counter in front of him.

"Thanks. Where's Emily?" Nathan said looking around. He and Haley were the only people in the café.

"She's with my brother Gabe and his fiancé Callie. They came in yesterday to visit me" Haley replied.

'So that guy with her in the park last night was her brother' Nathan thought finding himself a little relieved about that.

"Oh that's cool."

Haley walked around the counter and tripped on something. Nathan reached out to grab her so she wouldn't fall but she jerked her arm away from him.

'That's weird. I was trying to help her and she jerked away' Nathan thought.

"Um, thanks but I'm ok" Haley stammered.

'God Haley, the guy was just trying to help you! What is wrong with you?' Haley scolded herself.

Haley knew Nathan was just trying to help her but flinching was just a normal reaction for her. After four years with Connor it was a natural reaction, one that she wasn't able to shake just yet. Just then Karen walked in.

"Haley, you can go now. I know your brother is leaving tomorrow, go spend some time with him" Karen announced.

"Oh no. My shift isn't up yet. I can visit with him when my shift is over" Haley argued.

"Haley, you only have one hour left. I'm the boss, I said for you to go. So, go. It's fine. Business is slow right now and it won't pick up" Karen insisted.

"Ok, if you're sure" Haley hesitated.

"I'm sure. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Alright. Thanks so much Karen. I'll see you tomorrow" Haley said as she took off her apron.

When she was about to walk out of the door when Nathan's voice stopped her.

"Haley?"

Haley turned around shyly.

"Yeah?"

"If you need anything just let me know, ok?" Nathan said sincerely.

"Ok" Haley replied then turned and walked out of the café.

Just as Haley walked out of the café she saw Callie.

"Hey, what are you doing here? Where's Gabe and Em?" Haley questioned.

"They're at the park. I wanted to see where you work and I thought we could talk" Callie replied.

"Cal, I really don't want to relive that night again" Haley sighed.

"You don't need to, Gabe told me. I just want to talk Hales."

"Ok, let's go inside and get some coffee" Haley said walking back into the café.

They walked in and sat down at a table and Karen approached them.

"Hi Karen. This is Callie, my best friend and my brother's fiancé. Callie, this is my boss Karen Roe" Haley said introducing the two women.

Karen smiled warmly and said, "Hi. Nice to meet you Callie. What can I get you two?"

"I'll just have coffee" Haley replied.

"I'll have the same" Callie said.

"Ok, I'll be right back with your coffee" Karen said as she walked off.

"So, how do you like it here so far?" Callie questioned.

"I like it. Everyone is so nice to me Cal."

"That's good. I'm glad. So, we need to talk about the wedding seeing as you are my maid of honor and Em is the flower girl."

"Ok. Um, when do we have to get fitted for our dresses?" Haley questioned.

"Not until the end of next month. And don't worry, I won't put you in some hideous looking dress" Callie laughed.

"I wasn't worried about that Cal."

The bell above the door rang signaling that someone walked into the café and caught the girl's attention.

"Hey Haley" Lucas said as he walked past her.

"Hey Lucas" Haley returned.

Lucas sat down in the chair next to Nathan.

"Hey little brother. You know, you sure have been here a lot lately" Lucas said a little too loud.

Nathan pushed Lucas and looked back to see if Haley had heard what he said. Luckily she hadn't, she was deep into conversation with Callie.

"Shut up man!" Nathan warned.

"What? It's true. Ever since Haley started working here you've been here every day. I think you have a little crush on her" Lucas teased.

"Whatever. Anyway, I think I'm gonna break it off with Erin" Nathan said.

"Really? You finally taking our advice?" Lucas questioned, his eyebrows raised.

"She's getting too serious. I don't feel the same way that she does" Nathan said honestly.

"Well, then maybe you should break it off Nate. I gotta go. I just saw you in here and wanted to see if you wanted to play a quick game this afternoon after I get off of work" Luke replied.

"Yeah, sounds good."

"Ok, I'll meet you at the River Court at five. Bye" Lucas said walking out of the door.

Callie looked up and noticed Nathan staring at Haley.

"Hales, that guy has been looking at you quite a bit since we've been here. He's cute too."

"Who? Nathan? He has a girlfriend. Even if I was ready for a relationship, which I'm not, it wouldn't be with someone who has a girlfriend" Haley replied.

Nathan was leaving the café and as he was walking out he heard the last part of Haley's conversation with Callie.

'Yeah, I think I will break up with Erin today' Nathan thought to himself.

Haley's cell phone rang. She looked at the caller ID but didn't recognize the number. She decided to answer it thinking maybe it was a friend from home.

"Hello?"

"Baby, it's me" the voice on the other end said.

Haley froze. It was Connor. She stood up from the table, told Callie she'd be right back and walked outside.

"What do you want?" she questioned in anger.

"I want you to come home" Connor said and she could tell he was crying.

"No! Not happening" Haley said firmly.

"Baby, please. I miss you and Em" Connor pleaded.

"Don't you call me baby. Stop calling me. I'm not coming home. Ever!" Haley nearly shouted as she became angrier.

"Look, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean it. I'll never do that again. Just, please come home. I need you."

"You're sorry? That's not gonna cut it anymore. I've heard that one too many times. And I've already told you I'm not coming back" Haley sneered.

"I love you" Connor said.

After hearing him say that Haley hung up her phone. She wiped the tears from her face and looked up. Callie was standing in front of her, worry written all over her face.

"It was him wasn't it?" Callie questioned knowingly.

"Cal, please, you can't tell Gabe" Haley pleaded.

"This wasn't the first time he called was it Haley?"

Haley didn't answer. She just looked away.

"Damn it Hales!" Callie sighed, "Why didn't you tell Gabe that he's called you?"

"Because I know how he's gonna react. He's worried enough Callie. Please, I'm begging you do not tell him about this! I can handle this" Haley insisted.

"No, you can't!" Callie said raising her voice.

Before Haley could say anything Emily ran up to her.

"Mommy, mommy! I gots to swing and pay on da side. It was fun!" Emily squealed.

Gabe walked up behind Haley.

"Hey guys, what's up?"

Haley looked at Callie and pleaded with her through her eyes not to tell Gabe.

"Nothing. We were just talking" Callie lied.

Haley mouthed 'thank you' to her.

"Daddy a asshole" Emily stated.

"What? Emily where did you hear that word?" Haley said in shock.

"Unta Gabe" Emily said innocently.

Haley glared at Gabe.

"What is wrong with you? Don't say stuff like that around her!"

"Sorry, I was talking to Callie earlier. I didn't think Emily heard cause she was playing" Gabe said uncomfortably under his sister's glare.

Haley bent down to be at eye level with her daughter.

"Em, I don't want you to say that word again, ok? It's not a nice word" Haley explained.

"Otay mommy" Emily agreed as she wrapped her arms around Haley's neck to hug her.


	6. Chapter 6

Hey everyone! Sorry I don't have personal thank yous for the replies but please know that they mean so much to me! I'm so glad y'all like this fic! It took me a while to update but def. not as long ast last time! Hope you enjoy the chapter!

Crystal

Chapter 6

Two weeks had passed since Gabe and Callie visited Haley. Things were going good for Haley and she was becoming closer to the people she met when she first arrived. Haley was at Jake and Brooke's house with everyone else. They decided to get together, eat pizza and watch a movie. Jenny and Emily had quickly become best friends.

"So, Haley, have you found an apartment yet?" Peyton questioned before biting into her pizza.

"No, not yet" Haley sighed.

"The apartment next to mine is available. The people who lived there just moved out a few days ago" Nathan suggested.

"I'll have to check it out. I really need to get out of the hotel. It's not a place to raise my daughter" Haley replied.

"Hey, why don't we all go to the beach tomorrow? Summer just started and we haven't been to the beach yet" Brooke suggested.

"That's a great idea, I think Em would love the beach" Haley said.

Haley looked at Brooke. She had Emily sitting in her lap and she was braiding her hair. When Haley first met Brooke she didn't really like her, her personality was a bit much for Haley. But, after spending more time with her and getting to know her, she began to like Brooke.

"Da beach! Yaaay!" Emily said excitedly.

"I like the beach too!" Jenny piped in.

"Well, then it's decided. We're going to the beach tomorrow" Jake said.

"You don't have plans with Erin do you Nate?" Brooke said teasingly.

"No, I broke up with Erin almost two weeks ago" Nathan replied.

"Really? You finally took our advice?" Peyton questioned in shock.

"It just wasn't working out" Nathan said hoping that would end the conversation.

"There's another girl, right?" Jake questioned.

"No" Nathan answered simply.

Brooke, Lucas, Peyton and Jake just looked at each other then Nathan in shock.

Early the next morning everyone met at Jake and Brooke's house. They packed a basket of food and an ice chest full of drinks then piled into two cars and headed to the beach. When they got there they set up an area for them to sit down. Haley, Brooke and Peyton decided to lie down and tan. Emily and Jenny sat down and played in the sand while the guys tossed a Frisbee around.

"Haley, you said Callie is your best friend right?" Brooke questioned.

"Yeah. We've been best friends since we were five. She's always been there for me" Haley replied.

"Well, how do you feel about her being engaged to your brother?" Brooke asked.

"I'm fine with it. She always had a crush on him when we were younger but, being as she was three years younger, Gabe wouldn't pay any attention to her. When we graduated she went to the University of South Carolina. Well, that's where Gabe was going. They started hanging out and then after a few months they started dating and fell in love. I'm happy for them because I can see how much they love each other and how happy they make each other" Haley said simply.

"It's not weird for you?" Peyton questioned.

"No, not at all. I'm incredibly close to both of them. They're both my best friends. I tell them everything."

'Except for when I didn't tell Gabe that Connor called' Haley thought to herself.

The girls continued talking amongst themselves for a while before the guys joined them.

"Hey, anyone want something to drink?" Haley questioned as she walked over to the ice chest.

"I do" all the guys replied.

Haley bent over to get the drinks and Jake noticed a bad scar on her side.

"What the hell happened to your side Haley?"

'Oh….that. That's where my ex-boyfriend, Emily's dad, threw his cleats at me because I asked for money to put gas in the car' Haley thought bitterly.

"I was just a clumsy teenager" she lied.

"Oh, ok" Jake said.

"Oh, I went to check out that apartment this morning before I got to Jake and Brooke's house. I signed a lease. I'm moving in tomorrow" Haley announced excitedly.

"That's great Haley! We'll all help you move in" Lucas said.

"I need to buy furniture" Haley stated.

"Well, we can go do that tomorrow morning and the guys can watch Emily and Jenny" Peyton said.

"Really? I would appreciate that so much" Haley said.

"No problem. We'd all love to help" Brooke said.

For the rest of the day they all lounged around at the beach. The next day after Haley, Peyton and Brooke went furniture shopping they were moving Haley into her new apartment. The guys were in the process of moving the couch.

"No, it doesn't look good there. Move it to the other side of the room against that wall" Brooke ordered the guys.

"Brooke! We just moved it from there!" Nathan huffed.

"Yeah Brooke! Besides, this is Haley's apartment, not yours" Lucas agreed.

"Just leave it there guys. It's fine" Haley said walking into the room.

They sat the couch down where they were and sighed in relief.

"Well, all I've got left now is to put up Emily's bed" Haley stated.

"We'll do that for you" Nathan offered.

"No, you guys have done enough" Haley argued.

"It's no problem Haley" Jake said as he, Lucas and Nathan walked into Emily's room.

By the time they finished moving everything into Haley's apartment it was nine p.m. They were all sitting around Haley's living room eating Chinese take-out.

"Thank you all so much for helping me. You guys are wonderful" Haley said gratefully.

"It was nothing. Well, Peyt and I have to go. Thanks for the food" Lucas said as he got up.

Peyton and Lucas said their goodbyes to everyone then left.

"I'm gonna go get Jenny so we can go" Jake said to Brooke.

Jake came out of Emily's room a few minutes later.

"She's sleeping. I hope you don't plan on going to bed anytime soon Brooke because she's gonna wake up when I pick her up and she's gonna keep us up for a few hours" Jake sighed.

"Oh, you can leave her here Jake. You can pick her up tomorrow" Haley offered.

"No, I don't want to impose on you" Jake refused.

"You're not imposing. She's sleeping. It's fine, really" Haley assured him.

"Ok. Well, how about when I pick Jenny up we can go to the park with the girls for them to play" Jake said finally giving in.

"Sounds good to me. I'll see you tomorrow."

Jake and Brooke left and now it was just Nathan and Haley. Nathan got up and started picking up the empty cartons.

"What are you doing?" Haley questioned.

"Um, cleaning up" Nathan said.

"No. You don't have to clean up in my house. You're a guest."

"I want to help. It's not a problem. So, let me help" Nathan stated.

"Nathan! No!"

"Haley. Yes."

"No" Haley said smiling as she put her hands on her hips.

Nathan mocked her movements and put his hands on his hips. Then he walked past Haley to throw the cartons away. But, on the way to throw the cartons away he stopped and tickled Haley. Haley pulled away from him.

"You scared of me Haley?" Nathan laughed.

'Not scared of you, just jumpy around guys because of a certain son of a b itch' Haley thought to herself.

"Well, I'm gonna go home. I'm sure you're exhausted from moving in and want to get some sleep. I'll see you later. If you need anything I'm right next door" Nathan said as he walked to the door.

"Ok, thanks again. Goodnight."

"Night."

The next day, just as they had planned, Jake and Haley took the girls to the park. They were sitting at a picnic table watching the girls play. Haley watched Emily running around laughing and she smiled. Things were so different since she left Connor. Emily smiled and laughed a lot more because she wasn't scared all the time.

"I hope you don't mind my asking but, how old were you when you had Emily?" Jake questioned snapping Haley from her thoughts.

"I had her a few months after I turned eighteen. What about you? How old were you when Jenny was born?" Haley replied.

"Twenty. Her mom was seventeen."

After about half an hour of talking and bonding over being single parents Haley and Jake's conversation was interrupted by Haley's cell phone. She looked down at the caller ID.

'Ok, it's time for this to stop' Haley thought to herself.

"Jake do you mind keeping an eye on Emily for a few minutes?"

"No, not at all."

Haley got up and walked away from the table.

"Hello?" she said as she answered her phone.

"Hey baby."

"I told you not to call me that" Haley said through clenched teeth.

"Haley, it's been three weeks, it's time for you to come home" Connor said.

"When are you gonna get it through your head that I'm not coming home?" Haley said raising her voice.

Jake turned around when he heard Haley raise her voice. She looked really uncomfortable when her phone rang and now she sounded upset. He was curious as to what was going on.

"Look Haley, I said I'm sorry and that I won't do it again. I gave you time to cool off. Now you need to come home."

"Time to cool off Connor? I don't need time to cool off! I told you sorry won't work anymore. And as for you not doing it again, I've heard that before. Don't hold your breath because I'm not coming back" Haley said now seething with anger.

"I'm in the f ucking NFL Haley! I can and will track you down. One phone call and I can have a P.I. after you" Connor threatened.

"Do it Connor and I f ucking swear I will go public with this. How do you think your fans will feel to find out what you're really like? Do not ever f ucking call me again or try to find m because I swear I will make you regret it" Haley said threateningly.

When Haley finished she heard a click. She knew he hung up and she was relieved. She turned around and saw Jake standing right in front of her. He saw that she was shaking and he could tell she was upset so he pulled her into a hug. And for the first time in years Haley didn't flinch when a guy other than Gabe touched her.

"Haley, what the hell is going on?" Jake questioned, his voice filled with concern.

"That was my ex-boyfriend, Emily's dad. We better sit down, this is gonna take a while to explain" Haley started.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Before Haley knew it six months had gone by. She was renting a small apartment for her and Emily. She had grown to love the small town and the friends she had made. Over the last six months she had become close to everyone and they were all very important to her, especially Jake. Ever since that day in the park she and Jake had become best friends. She trusted him with her secret and he kept it.

"Haley?" Nathan yelled as he walked into her apartment without knocking.

"I'm in my room" Haley shouted.

Nathan walked to the back of the apartment and into Haley's room. He walked in to find her dancing around her room as she cleaned. He stood in the doorway for a few seconds watching her before she noticed.

"Hey" Haley said smiling at him.

"Hi" Nathan replied returning the smile.

"What's up?"

"Did I leave my cell phone here last night? I can't find it anywhere."

"Yeah. It's on my dresser. I found Emily playing with it this morning" Haley said.

"Naaatey!" Nathan heard Emily call from behind him.

Emily was running down the hall and she attached herself to Nathan's legs when she got to him.

"Well, hello gorgeous" Nathan said as he picked the little girl up.

Emily wrapped her arms around Nathan's neck then gave him a kiss on the cheek. Haley smiled as she watched Emily and Nathan. Over the past six months Emily had grown very fond of Nathan and the feeling was mutual for Nathan.

"You ready to go to the café for our weekly dinner?" Nathan questioned turning his attention to Haley.

"Karen's! Karen's!" Emily said excitedly.

"Yeah, let me just grab my purse" Haley said laughing at her daughter.

"Uh, Hales, I have something to ask you" Nathan said.

"What is it?"

"Would you like to go out with me Friday night?" Nathan questioned.

"Like a date?"

"Yeah, like a date."

"I don't know Nathan. I'm not sure that's a good idea, I don't know if I'm ready to date anyone yet" Haley replied, hoping she hadn't hurt his feelings.

"Ok, I understand" Nathan said trying to hide the disappointment in his voice.

Nathan walked out of Haley's room and she followed him. Just as they were about to walk out of Haley's apartment her phone rang.

"Hold on, let me answer that" Haley said turning around and running to answer the phone.

"Hello?" she said into the phone.

"Hey HJ" the voice on the other end of the phone said.

"Hey Gabe. What's up?"

Upon hearing Gabe and having already spent one too many times waiting on Haley to get off the phone with her big brother Nathan picked up Emily and mouthed, "We'll meet you there".

"Ok, I'll be there in a bit. Em, you be good" Haley replied.

Nathan and Emily were out the door in seconds and on their way to Karen's.

"Who were you talking to and where's Emily going?" Gabe questioned.

"I was talking to Nathan and Emily is going with Nathan to the café for our Wednesday night dinner. I'm going to meet them there when I get off of the phone with you."

"Are you dating Nathan?" Gabe asked curiously.

"No. Earlier he asked me out on a date though" Haley replied.

"What'd you say?"

"I said no."

"Why?"

"Gabe, I don't know if I'm ready" Haley explained.

"HJ, it's been six months. I've only met him twice but he seems like a nice guy and if you trust him to take Emily then he must be a good guy. Not every guy is like Connor" Gabe argued.

"I know not everyone is like him. I'm just scared Gabe" Haley admitted.

"Look, it's just a date. Go on one date with him and see how it goes. You should get back out there HJ."

"Ok. One date" Haley relented.

"Anyway, I called because I wanted to check on you. Connor hasn't called has he?" Gabe said his tone taking a serious turn.

"No Gabe. He hasn't called in six months. Well, I have to go, I'm already late."

"Ok, you let me know if he calls. I love you. Bye."

"Love you too. Bye."

Meanwhile at the café Nathan and Jake were having a conversation while everyone waited for Haley to show up.

"So, I asked Haley out on a date" Nathan said.

Jake raised his eyebrow in curiosity.

"Really? What'd she say?"

"No. She said she's not ready to date. Jake, I really like her. I mean we've gotten really close over the last six months but sometimes she acts like she's scared of me. What happened with her ex-boyfriend?" Nathan said sounding defeated.

"Nate, just give her time. Don't push her, and you really don't want to know about her relationship with her ex-boyfriend" Jake advised.

Nathan sighed and said, "Ok".

A few minutes later Haley showed up and everyone sat down and had dinner. When dinner was over everyone went home. Once they were back at their apartment complex Nathan carried Emily up to Haley's apartment because she had fallen asleep in the car. After putting Emily in her bed Nathan walked to Haley's room to tell her he was leaving.

"Goodnight Hales. I'll see you tomorrow" he said, turning around to leave.

Haley's voice stopped him from going any further.

"Nathan, wait."

Turning around Nathan said, "What's wrong?".

"I changed my mind" Haley said.

"About what?" Nathan questioned in confusion.

"Going on a date with you. My answer is yes, I'll go on a date with you" Haley clarified.

"I'll pick you up at seven on Friday night then" Nathan said coolly.

Nathan came across as cool and collected but inside he was shocked. Just a few hours earlier Haley had said no and he was disappointed. But, something happened in the last few hours to make her change his mind and he wasn't about to question what it was.

Haley smiled at Nathan and said, "Ok, goodnight".

"Goodnight" Nathan said smiling before he walked out of the apartment.

Thursday passed quickly and it was now Friday night. It was six-fifteen and Jake had just arrived at Haley's to pick up Emily.

"Are you sure it's ok for her to spend the night? Cause I can pick her up after my date with Nathan" Haley questioned.

"It's fine Haley. You know Jenny loves when Emily sleeps over and you know Brooke and I love Emily. Go out and have some fun, you deserve it" Jake assured.

"Jake, I'm so nervous. I haven't been on a date in years and my last relationship was far from good" Haley stated.

"Hales, chill out. Nathan is a good guy. I've known him for years and he's nothing like Connor, I promise. Just give him a chance."

"You sound like my brother. He's the one who convinced me to go on this date. He said it's time I get back out there" Haley laughed.

"Well your brother is a smart guy" Jake smiled.

Emily and Jenny ran into the living room with Emily's overnight bag and pillow.

"You ready to go Em?" Jake questioned.

"Yep" Emily shook her head vigorously.

"Ok, Em, give me a hug. Be good for Jake and Brooke, ok? I love you" Haley said as she gave Emily a hug and kiss.

"I love you too mommy" Emily said.

"Alright girls, let's go. Bye Hales, you have fun tonight. I'll see you tomorrow" Jake said.

"Thanks Jake. Bye" Haley said as she hugged Jake.

Jake left with the girls and Haley quickly turned her attention to getting ready for her date. Before she knew it was seven o'clock and she heard a knock on her door. She walked over to the door and opened it to find Nathan standing on the other side. He was wearing khaki shorts and a blue button down shirt that brought out his beautiful blue eyes.

"Hi" Haley said smiling shyly.

Nathan's breath caught in his throat when he saw Haley. She was wearing a white cotton skirt and a pink tank top. Her hair was curled and loosely pulled back into a pony tail.

"Hey," Nathan finally said "you ready to go?"

"Yeah, let me just get my purse and keys."

Within minutes they were at Nathan's car. Nathan walked over to Haley's side and opened the door for her.

"Thank you" Haley said.

After closing the door Nathan walked over to his side and got in.

"So, where are we going?" Haley questioned, a curious look on her face.

"I figured we could go to Mario's and eat some pizza then go miniature golfing" Nathan replied.

"Sounds good to me," Haley told him smiling. "But what's Mario's?"

"Oh. It's a pizza parlor in the next town over. It's not that far though. I just, well, I figured you'd be more comfortable if we weren't running into people we knew," he explained almost nervously.

"That's sweet Nate," she started. "But since Jake is keeping is Emily tonight that means Brooke knows we went out, so all of Tree Hill will probably know by tomorrow."

"Do you want me to take you home?" he asked seriously fearing she was having second thoughts.

"What? No, I was kidding," she told him quickly. "Well not about all of Tree Hill knowing because Brooke probably will tell everyone, but I don't care."

He grinned. "We could blackmail her with her crush on Jake."

Haley laughed and felt her nervous feelings leaving. This was Nathan, one of her best friends, there was no reason to be nervous. "Seriously is Jake blind or something? How does he not see it?"

Nathan laughed, but also recognized the irony in the statement. He knew Haley had no clue just how he much liked her.

"So why'd you decide to move to Tree Hill Hales? I mean, from New York? That's a big difference," Nathan said after the waitress took their order.

"I just did," she told Nathan politely.

"Do you have family in New York? Friends? I know you've got people out there missing you somewhere," he said teasingly.

"Yeah, maybe," she said cryptically. Nathan could tell he was bordering on pushing her too far so he quickly changed the subject. "I can't believe you like ham and pineapple pizza too. Everyone always gives me hell about it."

She smiled noticing how he had changed the subject, obviously noticing her discomfort.

"Well everyone else is crazy," she stated and he laughed.

"Emily told me her birthday is coming up, so I was thinking of what to get her. . .," Nathan started and Haley knew from the look on his face he was about to spring something on her.

"Her birthday isn't for another two months," Haley laughed.

"Can I get her a puppy?"

"Nathan! She's only going to be 4," Haley told him. "She isn't old enough for a dog."

He pouted. "But she really wants one. She's been begging me. How am I supposed to say no?"

She laughed, "Welcome to my world."

"Wait. . . Emily's birthday is in two months? You said you had her a few months after you turned 18, so when is your birthday?"

"Next Saturday," she told him casually.

"Next Saturday! Why didn't you tell us?

"It's not a big deal," she told him.

"Not a big deal my ass," he smirked. "We're taking you out. And since you didn't tell us I'm appointing Brooke in charge of the operation."

Haley groaned good-naturedly then got an idea. "I won't have anyone to keep Emily if we all go out."

Without commenting he pulled out his cell phone and dialed. "Hey Mom, what are you doing? . . . Oh ok. . . .Yeah, I am. Who told you that? . . . . Are you kidding me? . . . It's good. . . Listen, can you keep Emily next Saturday night so we can all take Haley out for her birthday? . . .OK, thanks. I'll talk to you later. . . Love you too, bye."

Haley stared at him, "You're very devious."

"Thanks," he shot back with a smile. "Now you have a babysitter, next excuse please?"

"I guess I don't have any, besides that I'm being forced into this."

He frowned, here he was pushing her again, "If you really don't want to do it, we don't have to Haley. We can all hang out at my apartment and order in if you'd rather."

She stared at him, amazed of his innate need to make her comfortable. "No, I appreciate it Nathan. It'll be fun."

"Weren't you a big basketball star in high school and college?" Haley questioned as Nathan set up his 4th putt on the 2nd hole.

"Yes," he stated tersely not even trying to be modest. He missed the hole once again and turned toward her. "Make your point," he prodded.

"Well, it's just that, you're. . .well, you're not very good."

"Thanks Hales," he responded dryly. She smiled at him before walking towards the ball and knocking it in with her foot.

She pulled the score card out, "That was 2 right?"

"Nuh-uh," he argued. "Don't spot me any favors! I'm going to beat you fair and square."

"Whatever you say Nate," she said as they walked to the next hole and she set her ball down, then putted. She got a hole-in-one and turned toward him, "Whatever you say."

"Man, with all this teasing, it's like everyone's here with us," he joked as he putted. And missed.

"Why's everyone always teasing you about your relationships?" she asked him candidly.

He shrugged his shoulders, setting up his next putt. He wasn't exactly comfortable talking about that with Haley, but on the other hand he knew if she was ever going to open up to him he would have to open up to her first.

"I haven't really been in a serious relationship for awhile," he finally said after he knocked the ball in. They proceeded to the next hole, but instead of putting, took a seat on a bench.

"Define awhile," she said.

"3 years," he admitted and her eyes widened in disbelief.

He sighed. "Her name was Tessa and, God, was I ever in love with her. I met her Freshman year and we dated for 2 years."

"What happened?" Haley questioned quietly.

"She cheated on me," he paused and she noticed the far off look in his eyes. She realized this wasn't something he told just anyone. "With my best friend. . . and I should have walked away right then, but I didn't. She cried and pleaded, said she'd never do it again, told me how sorry she was, and I believed her." Haley just nodded. "A week later I caught her in one of my other friend's bed."

Haley half smiled at him, "Not all girls are the same."

"I'm beginning to realize that," he told her with a smile as he stood and pulled her up too.

"I can't believe you beat me," Nathan said sinking into Haley's couch.

"I can!" she told him as she sat down.

"You're going to tell everyone aren't you?" he asked.

"Why shouldn't I?" she asked.

"Because I don't want you to," he stated factually.

"That's not really going to stop me Nate," she joked as she stood and crossed to the kitchen. "You want a beer?"

"Yeah, thanks," he called out as he leaned forward and grabbed the remote. She returned a minute later with two beers and handed him one. Nathan had been flipping through the channels, finally settling on one.

"Oh my gosh! Old School! This is my favorite movie!" Haley squealed.

"No way," Nathan said.

"Yeah, why?"

"This is my favorite movie," he said.

She turned toward him, "What's your favorite line?"

"I can't choose just one," Nathan laughed, "but man, I love when that waiter's like 'Love, it's a mother f ucker, huh?' "

Haley laughed, "Oh I love that part! And when, at the wedding Mitch is giving that speech and he's like, 'True love is hard to find, sometimes you think you have true love and then you catch the early flight home from San Diego and a couple of nude people jump out of your bathroom blindfolded like a goddamn magic show ready to double team your girlfriend!'" Nathan bust out laughing shaking his head and Haley continued, "You know what? We should have a contest, whoever can quote the most lines wins!"

He stared at her in awe and impulsively reached out a hand to push a few stray hairs behind her ears, "You are the perfect girl Haley James." She blushed as he sat back against the couch. "But I'm going to kick your butt on this."


	8. Chapter 8

So, I finally got rid of my writer's block! Woohoo! Let's hope it stays gone! Thanks for replying. Your replies keep me motivated!

Crystal

Chapter 8

It was early Saturday morning and Haley was awakened by the ringing of the phone. She stuck her hand out from underneath the covers and felt around for the phone.

Finally reaching the phone Haley groggily said, "Hello?"

"I want all the details about your date and don't leave anything out" said a cheery voice.

"Cal, it's only," Haley paused looking at the clock "eight-thirty. What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Oh, stop b itching and wake your ass up! I want details and I want them now!" Callie demanded.

Haley sighed and pushed herself up into a sitting position. She knew even if she refused to talk to Callie right now that she would just keep calling until Haley gave up and talked to her.

"Must you be so damn cheery this early in the morning?" Haley complained.

"Yes, I must. Do you always have to be so damn grumpy in the morning?" Callie retorted.

"You know I'm not a morning person, unlike you."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Stop stalling and tell me about your date."

"Ok. He picked me up at seven and he was such a gentleman, opened the door for me and everything. We went to the next town over and had dinner at a place called Mario's."

Over the next hour Haley recounted every little detail of her date to Callie.

"So, how do you feel about him? Do you like him?" Callie questioned, her voice full of curiosity.

"Well, I do care for him, he's become one of my best friend's over the past six months. But, that's all I'm willing to say right now" Haley admitted.

"I understand. I'd be hesitant too after what you went through with that prick."

There was knock on Haley's door.

"Hey Cal, I need to go, someone's here."

"Ok, I'll talk to you later. Bye."

"Bye."

The knocking continued and Haley shouted, "I'm coming!", as she got out of bed and walked to the door.

When Haley opened the door she saw Brooke, Peyton, Emily and Jenny on the other side.

"Get dressed. We're going shop for birthday outfits" Brooke demanded.

Haley just stood there looking at Brooke like she was crazy.

"What? Nathan told me I'm in charge!" Brooke exclaimed.

Thirty minutes later they were all walking around in the mall. They walked into a store and started looking through the clothes.

"So, Jake" Haley began before she was cut off.

"Don't even say his name around me right now!" Brooke huffed.

Peyton and Haley gave each other a questioning look then turned to Brooke.

"Ok B, what's up?" Haley questioned.

"Well, you know that skank Marissa he's been dating? He's gone out with her three times this week! Three times! What is he thinking? She's no good for him" Brooke ranted.

"And why's that?" Peyton questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Because she wears too much make-up, she has no taste in clothing, and she's older than him" Brooke stated.

"Brooke, she's only one year older than him" Haley said laughing at Brooke.

"Why don't you just tell him you're in love with him and get it over with?" Peyton questioned.

"It's not that easy. He doesn't think of me like that. Sure, he loves me but, as a best friend or a sister, not the kind of love I want from him" Brooke answered sadly.

Haley and Peyton just walked over to Brooke and hugged her.

"Haley!" Jake shouted as he stormed into Haley's apartment.

"Yes?" she questioned as she appeared from out of her room.

"Do you know what's going on with Brooke? She's been so impossible these last few days!" Jake began ranting, " She hasn't talked to me in three days and she makes it a point to avoid me! We live together! How do you ignore someone you live with? I mean, what did I do? Why is my best friend mad at me?"

Haley looked at Jake like he was stupid and said, "Jake, are you seriously that blind or are you just stupid?"

"Huh? What are you talking about Hales?" Jake asked in utter confusion.

"Sometimes guys are so stupid!" Haley sighed.

"Ok, you obviously know what's going on so, would you please clue me in?"

"It's not my place to tell you" Haley stated.

"Oh come on Hales! Brooke won't even say hi to me so, she's not gonna tell me what's wrong. Please tell me" Jake begged.

"Jake, she's in love with you, you idiot! And she's jealous as hell of Marissa" Haley said.

"What? No way, Brooke's my best friend" Jake scoffed.

"Seriously, how could you be so stupid? I could tell she was in love with you the first time I met you both" Haley said exasperated.

"Haley, I swear I had no clue. I know Brooke better then I know myself, how did I not know this?" Jake questioned in bewilderment.

"Obviously you don't know her better then you know yourself. If you did, you would've known that she's in love with you" Haley stated.

"I gotta go Hales. I need to talk to Brooke, I'll talk to you later, thanks" Jake said as he rushed out of Haley's apartment.

Brooke was lying in her bed reading a magazine when she heard someone walk into her bedroom then slam the door. She jumped at the sound and turned around.

"You're ignoring me cause you're in love with me!" Jake shouted.

"What? Get out of my room!" Brooke said through gritted teeth.

"No, we need to talk about this!" Jake demanded.

"There's nothing to talk about. Now, get out!" Brooke said as she walked over to the door and opened it.

Jake walked over to the door and closed it.

"I'm not going anywhere until we talk about this" Jake stated.

"Fine! I'm not in love with you, you big….person that's stuck on himself!" Brooke shouted as she started to lose her patience.

"You're lying! You just did that thing where you scrunch up your nose!" Jake accused.

"What thing where I scrunch up my nose?" Brooke questioned.

"Whenever you're lying you scrunch up your nose" Jake replied.

"I do not!" Brooke defended.

"You just did it again!"

"Jake, what do you want from me?" Brooke whined.

"I want you to tell me the truth" Jake said.

"Ok, yes, I'm in love with you and I have been for years. But, you obviously don't feel the same way about me. So, now that I've been completely humiliated will you please leave?" Brooke said sounding defeated.

"Brooke, baby…I just….I just don't know" Jake stuttered.

"Please, just leave" Brooke said, her words barely audible.

Jake opened the door to leave but just stood there looking at Brooke, who was now crying.

"Brookie's crying. Did you make her cry daddy?" Jenny said as she walked into Brooke's room.

Before Jake could respond Brooke said, "No baby, your daddy didn't make me cry. I'm just sad right now."

Jenny walked over to Brooke and wrapped her little arms around  
Brooke's legs.

"Don't cry Brookie, I love you."

"I love you too Jenny" Brooke replied as she bent down to Jenny's level to hug her.

Jake looked down at Brooke and tried to catch her eye. When Brooke noticed Jake staring at her she turned her head the other way. Jake sighed and walked out of Brooke's room.

"So, what's first? Dancing or drinking?" Peyton yelled above the music as they walked into the club Seven.

"Drinks! We're getting Haley drunk tonight!" Brooke exclaimed.

They all headed to the bar and ordered drinks with the guys following the girls protectively. Many beers and shots later they were all on the dance floor. Brooke had succeeded in her plan, Haley was drunk beyond belief.

"Hales, you're so trashed!" Peyton yelled above the music.

"I haven't done this in forever! I'm letting loose!" Haley exclaimed.

"But not too loose" Nathan said coming up behind Haley.

The song "Dip It Low" came on.

"I love this song! Dance with me Nate" Haley said turning around.

Haley and Nathan began moving to the beat.

"Wait…since when does Nathan dance?" Peyton questioned.

"He doesn't" Lucas stated.

"Well, he's drunk. And, it's Haley he's dancing with, he'd do anything for her" Brooke said.

Peyton, Lucas, Brooke and Jake watched Haley and Nathan dance together. They had never seen Haley like this, she was really letting loose. They were shocked when they saw Haley start to grind on Nathan. Nathan, however, didn't seem to mind that a bit. Lucas looked at Jake and saw a worried look on his face.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm worried she's gonna do something she regrets" Jake stated.

"Nathan won't take advantage of her, you know that" Lucas said.

"I know, I know, she's just….nevermind. I'm going get another beer" Jake said.

Right after Jake walked off a tall, blonde haired guy asked Brooke to dance and she readily accepted.

"I don't think it's Haley we have to worry about doing something she'll regret" Peyton giggled.

"What? What are you talking about?" Lucas asked confused.

Peyton pointed in front of them. Lucas and Jake, who had just returned from the bar, turned to see Brooke grinding and making out with the tall, blonde haired guy. Suddenly Jake felt something he never felt before, jealous.

'Why the hell am I jealous? She's not my girlfriend. It's not like I like her or anything' Jake thought to himself.

"Wow. Brooke's finally getting some action!" Peyton laughed.

"I think it's time for us to go" Jake stated.

"Why?" Lucas questioned.

"Well, cause we're all drunk off our asses, it's pretty late and Haley and I have children to take care of" Jake answered.

"True. We're all gonna have major hangovers. I'll go detach Brooke from the blonde's lips" Peyton agreed.

"And I'll try to separate the two grinding on each other over there" Lucas said laughing before he walked over to Nathan and Haley.

Ten minutes later they were leaving the club. Lucas was carrying Peyton on his back and Nathan was carrying Haley on his back.

"Why'd we leave? I was having fun with um, um…Matt!" Brooke whined.

"He was hot!" Peyton exclaimed.

Brooke moved to give Peyton a high five and she lost her balance and stumbled. Jake rushed to her side and grabbed her arm to steady her.

"Don't touch me! I'm fine!" Brooke growled as she snatched her arm from Jake's grip.

Jake backed off.

"Excuse me? Did you say that guy was hot?" Lucas asked, offended.

"Yes. But, you're hotter baby!" Peyton answered then kissed Lucas on the cheek.

"That's what I thought!" Lucas laughed.

"Brookie, he has your number. And, with that goodbye kiss you gave him, he'll definitely call you" Peyton stated.

Jake tensed up at Peyton's comment. There was that jealous feeling again.

"Yeah, that kiss was pretty hot" Brooke smiled.

"I had soooo much fun! Thank you guys sooooo much! I really love you guys!" Haley exclaimed then burst into a fit of giggles.

They all said goodnight and went their separate ways. Nathan and Haley in one cab, Peyton and Lucas in another, and Brooke in Jake in the last one. When Nathan and Haley arrived at their apartment Haley was sleeping. Nathan paid the cab driver then scooped Haley up into his arms and carried her up to her apartment. He found her keys in her purse, unlocked the door then walked to Haley's bedroom and layed her down on her bed. After covering her with a blanket he kissed her on the forehead then made his way to his apartment.

Haley slept until late the next afternoon. She was woken up by the phone ringing.

"Hello?" Haley answered groggily.

"Morning sunshine. How's the hangover?" Nathan said.

"Morning Nate. It's horrible. How's your's?"

"It's not too bad. Um, I'm at my mom's, do you want me to bring Em home?"

"That would be great! Thank you!"

"Ok, I'll be there in about fifteen minutes. Bye."

"Bye."

Haley got up and took a quick shower before Nathan got there with Emily. Fifteen minutes later there was a knock on Haley's door. She opened it and found Nathan holding Emily. Emily jumped into Haley's arms.

"Hi baby. Hi Nate" Haley said as she hugged Emily.

"Hey" Nathan said smiling at Haley.

"Do you want to come over later? I'm cooking" Haley questioned.

"Yeah. Just let me go home and shower" Nathan replied.

"Ok, I'll see you in a bit" Haley said.

"Ok, bye."

Ten minutes later Haley was starting to cook when she heard a knock on her door. Haley walked over to the door and opened it.

"That was fast Nate. I just started cooking" Haley said turning around as soon as she opened the door, not look at the person.

"Expecting your little boyfriend?" the person snickered.

Haley froze in her tracks. She slowly turned around and fear struck her.

"Connor?"


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

"Hey baby" Connor said as he walked into the apartment.

"What are you doing here?" Haley said backing away from him.

"I came to take you and Emily home."

"This is our home. We aren't going anywhere with you. Get out of my apartment" Haley stated.

"I'm not leaving without you" Connor threatened.

"Mommy" Emily said as she walked into the living room.

"There's my baby girl. Come here Emily" Connor said turning his attention to Emily.

"Don't you touch her!" Haley shouted.

"Em, come here. Come see your daddy."

"Emily, baby, go in your room."

Connor took a few steps toward Emily.

"Emily Dakota get in your room now and close the door!" Haley ordered.

Emily ran to her room and shut the door. Connor turned back toward Haley.

"Don't ever do that again!" Connor raged.

"Get out of my apartment now!" Haley shouted.

Connor turned and walked toward the door. But, he didn't leave, he closed the door and locked it. Then, he turned and walked toward Haley.

"Stay away from me" Haley quivered as she backed away.

Connor continued walking toward Haley until he had her backed into a corner.

"Go pack you and Emily's stuff cause you're coming home with me" Connor ordered.

"F uck you Connor! We're not going anywhere with you!" Haley defied.

Haley's comment enraged Connor. He grabbed her arms and slammed her up against the wall. Haley winced in pain.

"Don't ever f ucking talk to me like that again! I said pack your s hit cause you're coming home with me!" Connor seethed with anger.

"No" Haley whispered.

"What? Oh, does this have something to do with your new boyfriend? You know, the tall, dark haired guy you were grinding with last night at the club" Connor said as he glared at her.

A look of shock came over Haley's face. Connor smirked at the look on her face.

"Didn't I tell you that I'd find you Haley? I didn't have time to do it earlier than now. But, I hired a P.I. to find you. I got here yesterday and I followed you and your friends to the club where I saw you acting like the little whore that you are" Connor informed her.

"You bastard! I am not a whore! I never cheated on you! I have never been with anyone other than you and you know it! No, cheating was your job" Haley retaliated.

Haley's outburst only served to make Connor even more enraged. His hand went up and came down across Haley's face. Her head snapped to the side from the force of Connor's hand coming across her face. Tears welled up in Haley's eyes as she brought her hand up to her face.

Nathan had just stepped out of the shower. As he was getting dressed he heard screaming. He listened closely and realized it was coming from Haley's apartment. He could hear Emily screaming and crying, Haley screaming and he could also hear a male voice screaming. Then he heard something hit the wall and shatter. Nathan quickly finished dressing then walked over to Haley's apartment. He turned the door knob but the door was locked so he knocked on the door but no one answered.

"Haley" he shouted.

There was no reply. Haley was unable to hear him calling for her. Nathan walked back into his apartment, picked up the phone and dialed Jake's number.

"Jake, it's Nate" he said when Jake picked up.

"What's up?" Jake questioned.

"I just got out the shower and I heard shouting coming from Haley's apartment. Emily is crying and screaming, Haley's screaming, I hear a guy screaming and I heard something break. I tried to get into her apartment but the door's locked" Nathan spat out.

"Shit" Jake replied then slammed the phone down.

"Jake? Jake, hello?" Nathan said before hanging up the phone.

Five minutes later Jake arrived to find Nathan banging on Haley's door.

"Nate, we need to get in that apartment now!" Jake said sounding frantic.

"Jake, what the hell is going on?"

"No time to explain. We need to get in there now! Help me break the door open" Jake demanded.

Nathan and Jake rammed themselves against the door until they finally broke it open. When they burst through the door they found Haley lying still on the floor. She wasn't crying, she just looked like she was in shock. They saw a tall brunette guy standing over her screaming at her.

"Get the hell away from her" Jake shouted.

Connor's head snapped up and he turned to face Jake and Nathan.

"Well…if it isn't the little boyfriend" he sneered.

"Connor, don't" Haley began.

"Shut up!" Connor snapped at Haley.

"Don't tell her to shut up! Who the hell are you?" Nathan shouted.

"I'm her fiancée, not that it's any of your damn business. This is between me and Haley now get the hell out of here" Connor said as he pushed Nathan.

Nathan felt himself begin to fall from the push but quickly gained the strength to charge at Connor at full force. Connor fell to the floor with Nathan on top of him and Nathan began to punch him. Haley screamed at the sight of Nathan hitting Connor. Jake moved forward and tried to pull Nathan off of Connor when Connor punched Jake. After stumbling from the punch Jake went after Connor and so did Nathan. Both Jake and Nathan were attacking Connor.

"Guys, stop it! Stop! Jake! Nate! Please stop it! Leave him alone!" Haley cried.

"Don't defend him Haley! He hurt you! Go to Emily's room and let us deal with him" Jake said as he stopped hitting Connor for a minute.

Haley listened to Jake and ran to Emily's room. There she found Emily crying on her bed. She could tell Emily was terrified by the events going on.

"Come here baby" Haley said as she walked over to the bed and held out her arms to Emily.

Haley sat down and Emily crawled into her lap. She cradled her daughter and rocked her back and forth.

"It's ok Em. Everything is fine" she cooed into her ear.

As she tried to calm her daughter down as well as herself, Haley could still hear the guys fighting in the living room. After a few minutes of hearing things break and the guys slamming against the walls, Haley had enough.

"Baby, you stay right here, ok?" Haley said to Emily.

Haley sat Emily down on the bed and walked out of the room.

"Nathan! Jake! Stop it! That's enough!" Haley shouted as she walked into the living room.

Nathan and Jake stopped what they were doing and faced Haley. Connor slumped to the ground, bloody and beaten.

"Haley, do you want to call the cops and press charges against this bastard?" Jake questioned.

"No. I just want him out of here" Haley replied.

"What? After everything he's done you're not gonna press charges?" Jake asked bewildered.

"Jake, no. I just want him gone, ok?"

"You heard her. Get your ass up and get out of here" Nathan said looking at Connor.

Connor pushed himself off of the ground and stumbled toward the door. Nathan and Jake followed him to make sure he was leaving.

"Wait!" Haley said.

"Haley, what" Jake started.

Haley walked over to Connor and slapped him across the face with all of her might.

"You bastard! Don't you EVER, EVER come after me and my daughter again or so help me God you will regret it! I will go public in a heart beat and everyone will know exactly what a son of a b itch you are! And, I won't hesitate to throw your sorry ass in jail!" Haley grit out.

Haley turned and walked away from Connor. Nathan and Jake each grabbed Connor by the arm and threw him out of the apartment. Jake walked over to Haley and enveloped her in a hug.

"Baby girl, are you ok? Did he hurt you?"

"Yeah, he did but, I'm ok" Haley said then broke down in tears.

"It's ok Hales. He's gone, he won't hurt you anymore. I won't let him" Jake promised.

"Mommy" Emily called out as she wandered into the living room.

Nathan walked over and scooped Emily up.

"Hey gorgeous."

"Hi Natey" Emily sniffled.

Emily wiggled out of Nathan's arms and walked over to Haley.

"Is daddy gone?"

Haley bent down to Emily's level.

"Yeah baby, he is. And he'll never hurt us again. I promise."

Emily rubbed her eyes.

"Aw sweetie are you tired? Guys, what time is it?"

"It's around six" Jake replied.

"I need to feed and bathe her. I know she'll go to bed early after today's events," Haley looked around, noticing so much stuff thrown around. "This place is a mess."

"Why don't you two come and stay with me" Jake offered.

"No, Jake, you have Jenny and Brooke. I don't want to impose" Haley refused.

"You can stay with me. I don't mind and it's right next door. You'll have easy access to all your stuff" Nathan threw out.

"Are you sure Nathan? I don't want to impose" Haley questioned.

"Haley, I wouldn't ask if I wasn't sure. You wouldn't be imposing, I promise" Nathan replied.

"Ok, I'm going to go throw some things for me and Emily in a bag" Haley said as she walked to her room.

Nathan walked over to where Emily was sitting quietly on the couch.

"Hey Em, you are going to sleep over at my house tonight. Is that ok?" he questioned.

"Ok" Emily said quietly.

Nathan picked Emily up.

"Can we watch Nemo?"

"We can do anything you want gorgeous" Nathan replied.

"Look Nate, I know you know this but, I have to say it anyway – don't push her. She'll tell you when she's ready" Jake said.

"Yeah, I know, I know. So, that was Connor McKenzie? Connor McKenzie is Emily's dad? Haley's ex-boyfriend?"

"Yeah" Jake said.

"He was hitting her. That's why she came here, isn't it? She ran from him cause he beat her" Nathan said realizing the situation.

Before Jake could answer Nathan Haley walked in the room.

"Ok, let's go" she said.

"Gabe, I'm fine. I'll talk to you tomorrow. I just really want to get some sleep ok?" Haley said.

"Are you sure you're fine? I can drive up there" Gabe questioned.

"It's ten o'clock Gabe. I'm fine. I'm at Nathan's, nothing's gonna happen. I love you and I'll talk to you tomorrow."

Haley hung up the phone and put it back on the charger.

"Ok, Jake's gone. I'm pretty tired so I'm going to go to bed now. I'll be in the living room on the couch if you need anything" Nathan said as he walked into his bedroom.

Haley walked around the bed and reached to pick Emily up to place her under the blankets.

"Let me get her" Nathan said walking up to the bed.

Haley stepped back and let Nathan pick Emily up. Nathan pulled the covers back, placed Emily back in the bed then covered her.

"Thanks" Haley said.

"No problem. Ok, well, good night" Nathan replied as he turned to walk out of the room.

"Nate" Haley called out.

Nathan stopped in his tracks and turned around.

"Yeah?"

"Could you sleep in here? I'm scared to be alone" Haley questioned.

"Of course" Nathan replied.

Nathan walked out of his bedroom and came back in a few minutes later with a blanket and a pillow. He situated himself on the floor. Haley climbed into the bed after turning the lights off.

"Thank you Nathan" Haley said after a few minutes of silence.

"You're welcome" Nathan replied.

Just as Nathan was about to fall asleep he heard sniffling. He quickly realized Haley was crying. He wanted her to stop crying but, he didn't know what to do. Finally, after a few minutes of debating on what to do, Nathan reached his hand up to the bed and found Haley's. He laced his fingers through Haley's and she didn't pull away. Eventually they both fell asleep holding hands.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Nathan gently pulled his hand out of Haley's and stretched. He opened his eyes and turned to his side.

"Good Lord!"

"Hi Natey" Emily said innocently.

"Emily, you scared me!" Nathan said.

Emily was sitting next to Nathan staring at him.

"Sorry" she apologized.

"It's ok. Are you hungry?" Nathan replied.

Emily shook her head yes. Nathan got up and stretched before hold out his hand for Emily.

"Shh. Mommy's sleeping. Let's go in the kitchen" Nathan said.

Nathan and Emily quietly walked out of his room and into the kitchen. Nathan fixed them each a bowl of cereal and they sat down and watched cartoons.

Haley woke up and sat up in the bed. She looked around for a few minutes trying to figure out where she was before she realized she was in Nathan's apartment. She heard noise coming from the living room and walked towards it.

"Daddy was mean to me and mommy" Emily said to Nathan.

"Em.." Haley trailed off as she walked over to the little girl and picked her up.

"Uh, hey Haley" Nathan started a little unsure.

"Don't Nathan" Haley said.

"Don't what?" Nathan questioned, his eyes knit in confusion.

"Don't act all weird around me now. I don't want that. Look, about yesterday…" Haley replied.

"No, it's ok. Whenever you're ready Haley" Nathan cut her off.

"Well, I have to get ready for work. Do you mind watching Emily while I shower?"

"Not at all, we're watching cartoons" Nathan replied.

Twenty minutes later Haley came out of the bathroom dressed and towel drying her hair. She walked into the living room to find Jake and Nathan talking and Emily and Jenny playing.

"Hey Jake" she said.

"Oh hey Hales. Jenny wanted Emily to come to the park with us. Would that be ok with you?" Jake greeted.

"Sounds good to me. I'm sure she'd love that. I have to work until four though."

"Oh, that's no problem. I'll keep her until you're home from work."

"Thanks so much Jake. I really appreciate it" Haley said.

"Don't mention it. Jenny, Emily, are you girls ready to go to the park?"

"Yeah" both girls shouted at the same time.

Jake, Nathan and Haley all laughed before Jake said his goodbyes and left with the girls.

"Well, I'm going to go finish getting ready" Haley said as she walked back into the bathroom.

Twenty minutes later Haley walked out of the bathroom completely ready for work.

"Ok, well, I'm going to work now. I'll see you this afternoon" Haley said as she grabbed her purse and walked out of the apartment.

"Nathan! Emily!" Haley called out as she walked into Nathan's apartment.

"Hey Hales" Nathan said as he walked out of his bedroom.

"Where's Emily?"

"Oh, she's still with Jake. He's running late" Nathan replied.

"Oh, ok. I guess I'll go for a run before Emily gets back."

"Haley, don't do this."

"Do what?" Haley questioned in confusion.

"Don't act like you're ok. Don't act like nothing happened yesterday. You don't have to be strong for us. Jake and I are here for you, so is everyone else, let us be strong for you" Nathan replied.

"Do what? I'm not doing anything Nathan. I. Am. Fine" Haley said without emotion.

Nathan didn't say anything, he just stared at Haley. She started to walk by Nathan when he reached his hand out and grabbed her by the arm. She quickly jerked her arm away from him.

"Don't touch me!" Haley shouted.

Nathan looked at Haley in shock. He noticed she was shaking.

"I'm sorry. Oh, God. Haley, I'm so sorry!" Nathan apologized.

Haley just stood there shaking, not looking at Nathan.

"Haley…" Nathan said as he moved toward her and placed his hand on her shoulder.

Haley looked down at Nathan's hand. He ran his hand down her arm and linked their hands together.

"I **want** to be here for you Haley" Nathan whispered.

At his words Haley buried her face in his chest and choked out a sob.

Just then in rushed Emily, Jenny and Jake followed behind them.

"Mommy, mommy, guess what?" Emily squealed.

Haley quickly swiped away her tears and plastered a smile on her face.

"What sweetie?"

"Jake pushed me on the swing and I went soooooo high! And I wasn't even scawed" Emily gushed.

"Wow! That's great sweetheart!"

"Daddy can Emily sleep over tonight?" Jenny questioned.

"Oh, not tonight honey, daddy's got a lot of work to do. How about tomorrow night? Ask Haley if it's ok" Jake replied.

"Haley, can Emily sleep over tomorrow?" Jenny questioned with puppy dog eyes.

"Sure sweetie."

"Yay!" Jenny clapped her hands in excitement.

After staying and chatting for a while Jake announced that he and Jenny had to get home.

"Ok Em, it's time for you to take a bath" Haley announced looking at her daughter.

"I'm going to go pick up some food for us while you do that" Nathan said.

"Ok, that sounds good."

Haley walked into the bathroom with Emily to give her a bath. Nathan left to get the food. Thirty minutes later Nathan arrived back at his apartment to find Haley and Emily watching T.V.

"Dinner's here" Nathan announced as he set the food on the table.

Haley walked into the kitchen and set the table.

"Mommy, can I eat while I watch T.V.?" Emily questioned.

"Sure sweetheart" Haley replied.

Haley set up a tray with food for Emily near the T.V. then she and Nathan sat down at the table. Nathan looked up at Haley for a few seconds then looked back down at his food when Haley looked up. Haley stared at Nathan for a few seconds before he looked back up at her.

"Sorry I grabbed you earlier" Nathan spoke up.

"Nathan, don't" Haley said.

"We need to talk about it sometime."

"No, we don't" Haley gritted out.

Haley turned her attention back to her food. She heard Nathan let out a sigh of frustration.

"Fine. I'll be back later" Nathan said as he pushed away from the table.

Haley didn't react to Nathan's words or actions. She stayed silent as she heard him walk out and slam the door behind him.

"Mommy, where'd Natey go?" Emily questioned after she heard the door slam.

"He had to go somewhere sweetie" Haley replied.

Nathan knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer.

"Hey Nate" Peyton said once she opened the door.

"Is Luke here? I need to talk to him" Nathan blurted out.

"Yeah, he's in the living room. Luke! Nate's here" Peyton replied.

"Hey bro, what's up?" Lucas greeted Nathan when he walked into the living room.

"I need to talk to you" Nathan said.

"Ok, let's go outside and shoot some hoops" Lucas suggested.

Once they were outside they started shooting hoops. Nathan was silent and Lucas knew he would start talking when he was ready. After a few minutes Lucas heard Nathan let out a sigh.

"Ugh! I just like her so much and I wish she would open up to me. It's so frustrating" Nathan blew out.

"Ah, so she still hasn't talked about the whole Connor situation?" Lucas questioned.

"No and I know it's bothering her but she's just bottling it up" Nathan replied.

"Man, you guys should've called me yesterday. I would've been glad to help kick his ass" Lucas said.

"We didn't exactly have time to do that Luke…but, thanks" Nathan deadpanned.

"Look, I know you're not a patient person but, she's obviously been through a lot. Just wait a little while longer, I'm sure she'll talk to you when she's ready."

"Thanks Luke. Well, I better get back home" Nathan said.

When Nathan arrived back at his apartment he didn' t see Haley or Emily in the living room. He heard the faint sounds of the T.V. and headed toward his room.

"Haley" he called out.

She didn't answer him and when he reached his room he saw why. Haley and Emily were curled up together on his bed. They both looked so peaceful. Apparently they had fallen asleep while watching Shrek. He walked over to the T.V. and turned it off. Then he took a blanket and covered them both. Noticing a strand of hair in Haley's face, he pushed it out of the way before leaning down to kiss her on the forehead. After turning off the light he stood in the doorway and just watched them sleep for a while before he decided to turn in for the night.

The next morning Haley woke up then made her way to the living room. She saw Nathan sleeping. His arm was hanging off of the couch while his long legs were hanging off of the side of the couch. Haley let out a little giggle at the scene in front of her. She looked over at the clock and realized she had to get ready for work. An hour later Haley was finished getting ready and was about to leave for work. Nathan was still sleeping so she decided to leave him a note.

"Hey. What are you doing?" came Nathan's groggy voice.

"Oh, hey. Um, I have to get to work so I was just leaving you a note" Haley said as she crumpled up the note and threw it in the trash.

"What'd the note say?"

"That I had to get to work, Emily was still sleeping but Jake would pick her up around 11:30. Um, her overnight bag is packed and I have an outfit for today layed out for her on the bed" Haley replied.

"Oh, ok" Nathan replied.

There was an awkward silence. Nathan and Haley stared at each other for a few moments before Haley looked away.

"Uh, I really need to get to work before I'm late" she said and walked out of the apartment before Nathan had a chance to reply.

Peyton paced back and forth in the living room of her house. She was nervous about talking to Lucas. For a few days she had been trying to muster up the courage to bring up the subject of having a baby. Every morning for an entire week she had been sick and it finally dawned on her that she may be pregnant. She and Lucas had been married for less than a year and she wanted to find out how he felt about having a baby before she took a pregnancy test. When she got to the end of the room and turned to walk back to the other side she ran into Lucas.

"Hey baby" Lucas said as he leaned in to kiss her.

"Hi" Peyton returned.

"Is something wrong?" Lucas asked, concern written on his face when he noticed her odd behavior.

"No. I just wanted to talk to you about something. Let's sit down" Peyton answered as she motioned to the couch.

"What's up?"

"I've been watching Haley with Emily and I was wondering, how would you feel about us having a baby?" Peyton replied.

"A baby? Pey, we just got married less than a year ago" Lucas replied the shock evident in his voice.

"Does that matter? I mean we are married and we love each other. I thought you wanted to have children?"

"I do want children but not now. I'm only 23 and you're 22. We're too young. Let's wait a few years, get settled."

"Too young? Lucas, Haley is 22 and has a daughter, Jake is 24 and has a daughter. What if I'm ready to have a child now?"

"You're ready now? Peyton, where is this coming from?" Lucas asked confused.

"I just wanted to find out how you felt about us having a child, we never talked about trying to have a child. Obviously you're against it" Peyton shouted before she got up and stormed out of the room.

Lucas sat on the couch completely shocked by what had just happened. Finally after about ten minutes Lucas picked up the phone and dialed a number.

"Hey Brooke, it's Luke, can you meet me at the rivercourt in ten minutes?"

As she walked closer to the wooden bench Brooke could see that Lucas was upset.

"Ok, what's wrong?" she questioned as she sat next to him.

"Is Peyton pregnant?" Lucas blurted out.

"What?" Brooke asked taken by surprise.

"Has she said anything to you about being pregnant?" Lucas repeated.

"Um, no, not to me. Why?"

"She just brought up having a baby. I have no idea where that came from. So, it made me think, maybe she's pregnant."

"Luke, did you ever think that maybe she's just THINKING about having a baby? Peyton would have told you if she was pregnant. Besides, what's the big deal?"

"Brooke, I'm not ready for a kid. I'm only 23. Peyton and I haven't even been married for a year. I want us to be financially secure and have more time to ourselves as a couple. I'm selfish, I want Peyton to myself for a few more years before we have a kid" Lucas replied.

"Ok, that's good reasons to not want a child right now. But, what are you going to do if Peyton does get pregnant anytime soon? You seem really adamant about not having a baby" Brooke questioned.

"I don't know Brooke, I honestly don't know."

When Lucas returned home that night he noticed Peyton's car was gone. He walked into the house and looked to see if she left him a note. As soon as he walked into their bedroom he noticed something on their bed. When he got closer he saw that it was a pregnancy test and a note. He read the note silently.

_Looks like we have a problem._

_-P_

He walked to the phone and hurriedly dialed Peyton's cell phone number.

"Do not call me" came Peyton's angry voice.

"Peyt…" Lucas began but he heard a dial tone.

Lucas hit the redial button but Peyton had turned her phone off already.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

"Nathan, what's going on?" Haley questioned as she walked in to find Nathan cooking.

"I cooked dinner for us" Nathan replied.

"Thanks."

"I figured we could sit and talk since Emily isn't here," Nathan offered.

"Oh" Haley said with a look of uncertainty.

Nathan and Haley both sat down at the table and began to eat. There was a long period of silence.

"Haley, I want to help you. It's obvious you need someone to talk to. I hear you crying at night, I see you jump when there's a loud noise. I'm really concerned for you but, I can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on, what happened with Connor" Nathan urged.

Haley visibly flinched at the mention of Connor's name. She sighed in resignation.

"Ok, I'll tell you. I met Connor when I was 17. It was March of my junior year and I was on a campus tour of NYU with a friend."

**Flashback**

"Connor, look at those hot girls over there" a guy pointed out to his friend as they walked out of their class.

Connor said nothing as he walked straight to the 2 girls, zeroing in on the short brunette.

"Hi" Connor said when he reached the girls.

"Hi" the brunette giggled.

"What's your name?" Connor questioned.

"I'm Haley, Haley James."

"Well, Haley James, I'm Connor McKenzie."

"Hey Hales, the tour's starting, you coming?" Haley's friend replied.

Haley didn't hear her friend because she and Connor were staring into each other's eyes. She felt her friend nudge her.

"Huh?" she snapped to attention.

"The tour, you coming?"

"How about I buy you a cup of coffee?" Connor suggested.

"Carrie, do you mind? I really don't need to go on the tour since I don't plan on going here" Haley questioned her friend.

"No, it's ok. I'll call your cell when I'm done and we can meet up again" Carrie replied.

"Thanks. See you later" Haley smiled.

She and Connor walked to the coffee house on campus. They ordered their drinks and found a table to sit at.

"So, Haley, how old are you?"

"Uh, I just turned 17 last month. What about you?"

"Man, you're just a baby Haley James. I'm 21" Connor replied.

"Umm…" Haley said not knowing how to take his comment.

"Maybe I like it" Connor said in a husky tone.

Haley blushed at this comment and put her head down so Connor couldn't see. Connor reached over, put his finger under her chin and gently lifted her head so she was looking at him.

"You know, you're even cuter when you blush" Connor smirked.

This made Haley blush even more.

"I heard you say you aren't going to NYU, where are you going to college?" Connor questioned as he brought his hand back to rest on the table.

"Hopefully Stanford. It's been my dream to go there for as long as I can remember. But, there's no way my parents can afford to send me there so I have to work my ass off to get a scholarship" Haley responded.

"So James…got a boyfriend?"

Before Haley could answer Connor's question her phone rang.

"Hello?" she answered as she flipped her phone open. "Ok, I'll meet you there in a few minutes."

Haley flipped her phone closed and began gathering her things.

"Sorry, that was Carrie, she's done with her tour and I've got to go meet her. Thanks for the coffee" Haley said.

Haley stood up to leave when Connor placed his hand on her arm to stop her.

"Would you like to go out with me Friday night?"

"Yeah, I'd like that" Haley smiled.

End Flashback 

"So, I gave him my phone number, he called me and we went out that Friday night and we really hit it off."

"Ok, so that's how it got started, but how'd it get to now Haley? What happened? How'd it get so bad?" Nathan inquired.

"Well, it wasn't always bad Nate. In the beginning he was really good to me. He came from a rich family and he was always buying me things. We were always together, I was never home. My parents didn't care. Gabe and Claire were gone by then and they were tired of raising children so, they were always on some new vacation. I was so consumed with Connor that I grew distant from my friends. When I actually did spend time with my friends all we did was argue" Haley explained.

"Argued? Why did you guys argue?"

"They didn't like Connor. I didn't understand why, he had never done anything to them. It turns out that they were jealous because I was spending so much time with Connor and not with them. But, later on there were other reasons they didn't like him" Haley continued.

"What kind of reasons?" Nathan prodded.

"Well, one night Connor and I got in this huge fight. Of course I ran to my friends crying like all teenage girls do. Callie, April, Carrie and I were sitting in Ray's, a local restaurant, when Connor walked in with another girl. It broke my heart to see him with someone else. I ran out of the restaurant crying and my friends followed me. We were standing in the parking lot and they were trying to calm me down when Connor walked up and asked to speak to me alone. I agreed and my friends reluctantly left us alone. I immediately started shouting at him about hooking up with some other girl when we weren't even broken up. He said the girl meant nothing to him that it was a stupid mistake. I was hesitant to believe him but he gave me those puppy dog eyes, begged me to forgive him and told me he loved me. And, of course I forgave him. That was another reason my friends didn't like him. They didn't trust him, they said he was a charmer."

"He sounds like it" Nathan threw out.

"Everything was going great until August came around."

"What happened in August?"

"August of my senior year in high school is when I found out I was pregnant with Emily. It was a Saturday night and we were cuddling on his couch in his apartment watching TV…"

**Flashback**

"Connor?" Haley questioned hesitantly as she looked up at him.

"Yeah baby?" Connor replied putting his head down to look at Haley.

"Um, I have something to tell you."

"What is it? You know you can tell me anything Hales" Connor encouraged her.

"Well, you know how I haven't been feeling well lately?" Haley questioned.

"Haley, what's going on?" Connor questioned sounding worried.

Haley let out a breath she had been holding in.

"A few days ago I took a test and I went to the Dr. yesterday and he confirmed that I'm pregnant."

Connor didn't say anything. He just stared into thin air. Haley bit her lip, something she always did when she was nervous.

"Baby? It's gonna be alright though, right? I mean, we're in love and you're financially stable…"

"What the f uck are you trying to do to me Haley?" Connor erupted as he jumped up from the couch.

"What?" Haley jumped back in shock at his tone.

"You're pregnant? Are you trying to trap me?"

"Trap you? What do you mean?" Haley questioned confused.

"You know I'm getting drafted to the NFL."

"I know Connor and I, I just thought that I could put school off for a few years and stay with you. Me and the baby could move in with you. Your salary would be enough for us to live off…I can stay home with the baby and.."

"And what? Be some picture f ucking perfect family Haley? This is not going to work, I'm only 21 and you're only 17. I can't do this. How could you do this to me?" Connor interrupted.

"How, how could I do this to you? I didn't get myself pregnant Connor, Mr. I'll-Pull-Out-We-Don't-Need-A-Condom!" Haley yelled in frustration.

"Don't ever talk to me like that again! Here's what you're going to do. You're going to get on the phone and call the clinic and set up an abortion," Connor ordered.

"I will not! I am scared to have a baby, yes, but I am NOT going to kill my baby!" Haley shouted as tears rolled down her face.

"Then we're over" Connor bluntly stated.

Haley stood in front of Connor in shock. She stared in his eyes to see if he was serious, and he was.

"F uck you Connor" she grit out before walking out of the apartment and slamming the door behind her.

**End Flashback**

Haley looked back at Nathan and she could see him clenching and unclenching his fists.

"Nathan. Nate…are you ok?" she questioned, her voice full of concern.

Nathan blew out a long breath as he unclenched his fists.

"Obviously it didn't end there. So, what happened next?"

"I didn't see him until February 18, my birthday. I was 7 months pregnant at the time. It was nighttime and my friends had just dropped me off at my house. At first I didn't see him but as I walked closer to my house I saw him sitting on the steps of my porch" Haley started.

**Flashback**

"What the hell are you doing here Connor?" Haley spat out as she stood in front of him.

"That's…we…you're pregnant" he said in awe as he stood up and reached out to touch her stomach.

"Do NOT touch me" Haley gritted through her teeth as she slapped his hand away from her.

Haley walked around him and made her way to the door to her house. She took her keys out of her house. Before she unlocked the door she turned back around to face Connor.

"And, yes, I'm pregnant. I was pregnant 6 months ago when you told me to it was over because I wouldn't abort my little girl."

"A little girl? I'm gonna have a little girl?" Connor questioned as he once again reached out to touch Haley's stomach.

"I swear Connor, do NOT touch me" Haley backed away.

"Haley…" Connor sighed.

"What! What Connor? What the hell do you want?" Haley questioned, the anger evident in her voice.

"I just want to talk to you" Connor answered.

"I haven't heard from you or seen you in 6 months and now you just show up on my door step and you want to talk? I have nothing to say to you. Go away" Haley retorted as she let herself into her house.

Before she could completely shut the door Connor put his foot in the way.

"Please Haley. I just want to talk. I really missed you. And…I need you" he pleaded.

"Connor, don't do this to me" Haley said, her voice cracking.

"Baby, please let me in. I love you."

Haley hesitated for a second before she opened the door completely to let Connor in. Connor stared at Haley for a while before he entered the house. They walked to Haley's room and Haley sat on the bed. Connor knelt down in front of Haley and slowly put his arms around her waist and his head on her stomach.

"I'm sorry…I screwed up…I treated you…and our baby…horribly, but I love you Haley and I want to be with you. I want to be a dad," Connor whispered.

Haley put her hands on Connor's head. At her actions Connor looked up and stared into her eyes. He brought his hands from around her waist to her stomach.

"I wanna see you" Connor said.

Slowly he started to unbutton her shirt. He hesitated on one of the buttons but he noticed she wasn't moving to stop him so he continued to unbutton her shirt. Once he had her shirt completely unbuttoned he slid it off of her.

"You're beautiful…I'm so stupid," he whispered.

"But so am I" Haley said with a wistful smile.

"What? No you're not. Why do you say that?" Connor questioned confused.

"Because I believe you," Haley replied.

Connor leaned in and kissed Haley. The slow, gentle kiss quickly became heated. Before things went too far Connor pulled away. Haley looked at him questioningly.

"What…" she began.

"I wanna do this right baby" Connor cut her off.

Connor reached into his pocket and pulled out a small velvet box. He got down on one knee and Haley gasped and her hands flew to her mouth.

"Haley Elizabeth James, will you marry me?" Connor questioned.

As Connor looked into her eyes, tears were rolling down her cheeks. He reached out his hand and wiped the tears softly from her cheeks.

**End flashback**

"I think I know where it goes from there" Nathan winced.

Not wanting to think anymore about what happened next in Haley's story, Nathan got up and cleared the table since the both of them were finished eating. They both made their way over to the couch to get comfortable so Haley could continue her story.

"Ok, so, what happened next?" Nathan questioned, prodding her to continue on.

"Well, things were good until mid-March. That's when we had another problem," Haley answered.

**Flashback**

Haley rushed into Connor's apartment, her face brimming with excitement.

"Baby, I got in!" she hollered.

Connor came out of his room to see Haley with a piece of paper in her hand and a smile from ear to ear.

"What?" he questioned.

"Stanford. I got into Stanford, full scholarship!" Haley beamed.

"That's great but you're not going" Connor said.

"What?" Haley questioned confused.

"We're engaged and you're having my baby. You can't move to California, I'll be here playing pro ball," Connor explained.

"Connor, Stanford has been my dream since I was a kid. I have worked my ass off for years to get this and I got it! I don't have to worry about a place to stay, my parents already talk to my aunt Donna and she said the baby and I can stay with her. And about us being engaged, we love each other, we'll make it" Haley reasoned.

"You can not take my baby to California. I'll never see you or the baby. Hales, we're supposed to be a family. We can't be a family if you're in California and I'm here in New York" Connor countered.

"Connor, Stanford is my dream! I can't give that up! It's not like we'll break up if I go. You'll see me and the baby. We can make it work."

"Baby, I don't want you across the country away from me with our baby. We can't be a real family that way and I want to be a family. Don't you want to be a family?"

At that last statement Haley lost her resolve.

"Fine Connor, I won't go. I'll stay here so we can be a family."

Connor grinned from ear to ear, picked her up and spun her around.

"You won't regret it. We'll be so happy Hales," he promised.

**End Flashback**

"So you gave up your dreams of going to Stanford for him?" Nathan questioned.

"Yes. I loved him. I was engaged to him and pregnant with his child. I would've done anything for him" Haley replied.

"Ok, well, it sounds like things were ok, so what happened to bring you to where you are now?"

"It all started about 2 months after I had Emily. It started with name calling. He would call me fat and ugly and tell me I was lucky to have him cause no one else would want me. He completely tore me down like that. Then soon after he started hitting me. At first it was just shoving then it escalated to slapping then punching and worse. The last time he did it though was the worst. That's when I knew I had to leave or he'd kill me," Haley explained.

"God, how could anyone ever lay a hand on you? What happened the last time?" Nathan questioned through gritted teeth.

"Well, he came home from practice one day pissed off about something and Emily was excited to see him and wanted him to play with her. At the time he had a hurt knee and Emily latched on to that knee and hurt him and he blew up at her. He almost hit her and I stepped in. I put up with him hitting me but I would never let him lay a hand on my baby. That was the worst beating I ever got from him but after being out on the floor for a while I made myself get up, pack Emily and my stuff and got the hell out of there. I'm still not sure how I did it. But, thank God, He gave me the strength to" Haley finished.

"So, that's what all those bruises were on your arms and back that I saw in the café that day when you first started there" Nathan said reality finally dawning on him.

"Yes, that's what they were from. And at the beach when you guys saw the scars on my side and I said it was just from me being a clumsy teenager, that was a lie. That's one of my many scars from Connor. He came home pissed off one day about something and we got into an argument and he threw his cleats at me and as a result I have those lovely scars on my side" Haley explained as tears fell freely down her cheeks.

Nathan leaned in and gathered Haley into his arms. Haley finally let go and let the sobs flow freely. After a few minutes Haley pulled back and looked Nathan directly in the eyes. His eyes were so full of sympathy and love. Haley couldn't help herself, she reached up and kissed him. At first Nathan didn't respond because he was in shock but he quickly wrapped his arms around her and deepened the kiss. Haley locked her arms around Nathan's neck as they kissed. The kisses became more heated and soon Nathan's shirt was off and so was Haley's. Nathan pulled back finally realizing what was going on.

"Haley…" he began unsure.

"No. Don't. I need you Nathan. I want you" Haley silenced him by putting a finger on his lips.

She pressed her lips to his and they made their way off of the couch and into Nathan's bedroom. Nathan laid Haley back on the bed but as he did so she winced in pain. He quickly pulled back.

"Haley, what's wrong? Did I hurt you?" Nathan questioned, his voice filled with concern.

Haley sat up and turned her back to him.

"No, it wasn't you who hurt me" she replied softly.

Nathan gasped when he saw her back and neck. She had bruises that were a mixture of black, blue and purple all over her back from Connor slamming her against the wall. He reached his hand out and gently touched the bruises. He leaned in and lightly kissed the bruises on her neck.

"I wish I could kiss all the pain away," he said.

Haley turned around at his words and kissed him hard. The kisses became more intense, she couldn't get enough of him, she needed more of him. Nathan laid back and pulled her on top of him. She pulled her lips away from his mouth and trailed kisses down his jaw, his neck, collar bones, chest and stomach. Then she stopped and unbuttoned and unzipped his pants then took them and his boxers off. She looked up at Nathan and saw the love for her in his eyes. She stood up and took the rest of her clothes off as he watched then she laid back on top of him and they became one in the heat of their passion.

"I'm coming!" Brooke yelled at the non-stop ringing of the doorbell.

She was annoyed. It was 11 p.m. and there were 2 little girls sleeping upstairs that she didn't want woken up. Her annoyance soon faded as she opened the door to find her best friend standing on her doorstep in tears.

"Peyton! What's wrong?" she questioned her annoyance replaced with concern.

"I'm pregnant" Peyton sobbed.

"Oh baby, come in" Brooke said and ushered her to the sofa.

"And Luke doesn't want it" Peyton continued.

"Peyt, I'm sure Luke wants the baby it's just that…" Brooke began.

"Don't! Don't you dare defend him! I know his bulls hit reasons of 'we're too young and we just got married'. I don't need to hear you defend him," Peyton said angrily.

"Why don't you call Lucas and sit down and talk to him? I'll call him and he can come over here to meet you" Brooke suggested standing up.

"Brooke if you call him I swear I'm leaving. I do NOT want to be anywhere near him right now. He is the last person I want to talk to or even see right now!" Peyton threatened.

"Ok. Fine, I won't call him." Brooke said.

Before she could sit back down, the phone started ringing. She looked at the caller I.D. then at Peyton.

"It's Luke," she said.

"Don't tell him I'm here. Tell him you haven't seen or heard from me," Peyton instructed.

"Peyton, he's my best friend, I can't lie to him" Brooke said.

"Fine, you tell him I'm here then I'm gone and I don't know where I'm going."

Brooke sighed in defeat before picking up the phone.

"Hello?"

"B, it's Lucas. Peyt and I got into a huge fight and she left. I have no idea where she is and I tried calling her and she hung up on me then turned off her phone. Have you heard from her? Is she with you? I'm going out of my mind with worry," Lucas said.

Brooke looked at Peyton and saw the warning look Peyton was giving her before she sighed and answered Lucas.

"No, Luke, I'm sorry."

"Ok, well if you do please get her to call me and tell her I love her" Lucas said before hanging up.

Brooke walked back over to the sofa.

"I hate lying to him Peyton. You know that, he's like a brother to me. He's worried sick about you and he said to tell you to call him and to tell you he loves you" Brooke said as she sat down next to Peyton.

"Well, I'm not going home anytime soon so, he might as well get used to missing me" Peyton said.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

The next day Nathan woke up expecting Haley to be by his side but she wasn't. He looked at the clock and the red numbers read 1 p.m. He got up and looked around his apartment for Haley but didn't find her or any of her stuff. He decided to call her.

"Hey, it's Haley, you know what to do. beep."

"Hales, it's Nathan, I just woke up, where are you? Give me a call when you get this."

Nathan got dressed to go for a jog and walked out of his apartment. As he was walking past Haley's apartment he noticed there was a new door up. He thought maybe Haley might be there so he stopped and knocked on the door. The door opened and Nathan expected to see Haley but he saw his sister-in-law instead.

"Peyton? What are you doing in Haley's apartment? Is Haley here?" Nathan questioned clearly confused.

"Hey Nate. No, Haley's not here. She and Emily went to her brother's in South Carolina to deal with some wedding stuff. She said she could be gone for up to a week" Peyton replied avoiding the question of why she was there.

"Again, I ask, why are you in Haley's apartment?"

"Why don't you go ask your asshole of a brother" Peyton snapped then closed the door.

"Okay" Nathan said to himself.

Nathan slowly turned away from the door and walked away. He was clueless as to what was going on. Where was Haley? Why was Peyton in her apartment? He took his cell out of his pocket and dialed Lucas' number.

"Luke, it's me. Why is Peyton in Haley's apartment?" Nathan questioned.

"Is that where she is? Thank God" Lucas responded letting out a long breath.

"What do you mean 'Is that where she is'? She's your WIFE Luke, you're supposed to know where she is. What's going on?"

"Uh, I don't want to talk about it on the phone. Come over and I'll explain everything," Lucas said.

"Alright, I'll be there in 10 minutes" Nathan replied before closing his phone and putting it back in his pocket.

True to his word, Nathan showed up at Lucas' house 10 minutes later. Nathan walked into Lucas' house without knocking.

"Luke!" Nathan called out.

"Living room" Lucas shouted.

Nathan walked into the living room to find Lucas sitting on the couch with his head in his hands. He was still in the clothes from the day before except now they were wrinkled. Lucas looked disheveled and tired.

"You look like hell," Nathan stated.

"Thanks. I've been out all night and most of the day looking for my wife" Lucas bit out.

"Yeah, about that, what the hell is going on?" Nathan questioned ignoring his brother's tone.

"Peyton left me last night" Lucas said letting out a long breath.

"What? What do you mean she left you?" Nathan questioned as his face contorted in confusion.

"She left me. Last night she brought up the subject of having a baby. She asked what I thought about it and I said we're too young and we should wait a few years. Peyton said she wants a baby sooner than that, said she's ready for one now. We got in to an argument about it and she stormed out of the room. I called Brooke and met her at the rivercourt to ask her about it, find out if Peyton talked to her about it. When I got home she wasn't here. I found this on our bed" Lucas replied handing the note to Nathan.

"Looks like we have a problem?" Nathan read aloud still confused.

"She's pregnant Nathan" Lucas sighed.

"You're gonna be a father? That's great Lucas."

"No, it's not."

"What do you mean no?"

"I'm not ready for a kid. We're too young, we need more time to ourselves," Lucas explained.

"Oh come on Lucas! Haley and Jake are young and each have a kid," Nathan argued.

"Exactly and look how much they struggle sometimes being young parents!"

"Lucas, they're SINGLE parents, that's why they struggle. Besides, you and Peyton have been together for years, you've had time together" Nathan pointed out.

"Now you sound like Peyton! You're MY brother you should be on MY side" Lucas spit out.

"What side Lucas? Your WIFE is having YOUR baby! There are no freaking sides! The TWO of you are having a kid TOGETHER!" Nathan stressed.

"Look, I don't want to argue with you anymore Nathan. I haven't slept in over 24 hours and my wife won't speak to me. Now that I know where she is maybe I can get some sleep. You know where the door is, I'll talk to you later" Lucas said as he walked out of the room.

"Ok Hales, spill it already" Callie ordered.

"Spill what? What are you talking about?" Haley questioned from the other side of the dressing room.

Callie and Haley were in the bridal shop in South Carolina. Haley had gone to her brother's house for 2 reasons: 1 was for Emily and herself to try on their dresses for the wedding and the other was for her to get away from Nathan.

"Don't even try it, this is me you're talking to. You've been here for a week now and both Gabe and I know something's going on. He's been hesitant to bring it up because of everything that's happened lately but I'm tired of tiptoeing around you. So, I tell you again, spill it. What the hell is going on?" Callie replied.

Haley let out a long sigh before turning around to face her best friend.

"I slept with Nathan."

"How was it?" Callie questioned.

"Callie!" Haley screeched.

Callie burst into laughter.

"Callie this is not funny! I made a huge mistake!" Haley hissed.

"Oh Haley calm down. What's the big deal? I know you like the guy. He's a really nice guy from what I know about him" Callie replied, her laughter dying down.

"Yeah, so was Connor in the beginning."

"No, don't go there. Don't even compare Nathan to Connor. That's so unfair to Nathan. Me, Carrie, April, Erica and Brittney all noticed something was off with Connor from the beginning but you didn't want to listen. You thought he was perfect, no matter what we told you, Connor could do no wrong. I don't get that vibe from Nathan, I think he's really a good guy Hales" Callie argued.

"Cal, I don't wanna argue about this. The seamstress is done with Emily and I so we're just gonna go back to the house. I'll see you there."

Twenty minutes later Haley walked into Gabe and Callie's house.

"H.J., Nathan called for you. I told him I'd have you call him back" Gabe said when he saw Haley.

"What the hell did you do that for?" Haley snapped.

"Excuse me? What is your problem?"

"Nothing. Sorry I snapped at you" Haley said trying to avoid talking to Gabe.

"Stop right there. You know you can't lie to me. I'm tired of walking on eggshells around you H.J. so, tell me what the hell is going on" Gabe demanded.

"Gabe I really don't wanna deal with this right now. If I did I'd still be in North Carolina. I need to clear my head" Haley let out a shaky breath.

"No, what you need to do is talk to someone. So, park your butt in that chair and talk to me" Gabe pointed to the chair across from him.

"You suck" Haley said.

She sat there gathering her thoughts, taking deep breaths. All the while she could feel her brother's eyes on her.

"I don't know what to do Gabe. The night before I came here I slept with Nathan. I didn't mean for it to happen but all the stuff with Connor had just happened a few days before. It was a big mistake. I didn't even tell him goodbye, I just left in the morning and came here."

"Haley Elizabeth James! I can't believe you did that!" Gabe scolded.

"Gabe, I freaked ok! He's like my best friend there other than Jake and I just jumped into bed with him and I just didn't know what to do. I messed up in so many ways, I know…" Haley said.

"Call him" Gabe said simply.

"What? I can't! Not after what I did!" Haley screeched.

"Call him! You owe him that much HJ" Gabe reasoned.

"You're right. I just don't know what to say to him. I'm so ashamed I left without even saying goodbye, he didn't deserve that," Haley said hanging her head.

"No, he didn't. You go call him, I'll go put Em down for a nap" Gabe said kissing her on the forehead then walking out of the room.

Haley grabbed her phone, flipped it open and pressed number 3 on her speed dial. Before hitting the send button she stared at the phone for a while, trying to think of what she was going to say to Nathan. Finally after a few minutes she hit send. After 4 rings she heard him pick up.

"Haley?" Nathan answered softly.

"Yeah, hey Nate…"Haley trailed off.

"I've been trying to call you for a week. I've left you tons of messages on your cell phone and with Gabe and Callie."

"I know." Haley replied softly.

"But stupid me, you've been avoiding me haven't you? Of course I mean after all, you up and left without a word the morning after we slept together" Nathan bit out.

"Nathan I'm sorry about that. I freaked out. And I know I wasn't supposed to leave for South Carolina until this week but after what happened I decided to leave a week early."

"Haley you could've told me you were leaving! Something big happened between us that we need to talk about! You can't just run from something like that!"

"I know! Look, I'm sorry! I told you I freaked out, everything with Connor had just happened and then the thing with you and I happened and I'm just not ready to deal with it yet. I need time to think Nathan. I need to process this all. A lot has happened to me in the past few weeks…"Haley said before she was cut off.

"Yeah, I understand but that THING that happened with you and I was a big thing. And like you said it happened between us and we need to talk about it" Nathan cut in.

"Damn it Nathan! I know that," Haley said starting to lose her temper, "I promise when I get back to Tree Hill we will talk about it. I know it's something we need to talk about and I don't plan on avoiding it forever. I just really can't deal with it right now. It's just too much and with the wedding coming up there's a lot to do. I know I should've talked to you before I left and that's a big reason why I've been avoiding your calls and not returning your calls but Nate, I promise when I get home we'll talk, ok?"

"Ok, we'll talk about it when you get home" Nathan sighed.

"Are you still coming to the wedding with everyone else?" Haley questioned.

"Do you want me there?"

"Of course I do! And so do Gabe and Callie, they really like you. Please come Nathan" Haley responded.

"Ok, I'll be there. See you in a few weeks" Nathan sighed before hanging up.

Haley sighed as she put the phone down on the table. She put her hands in her head as she thought of how much of a mess her life was. She jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's ok Callie. I was just in my own little world, thinking about how screwed up everything is" Haley replied.

"Are you ok Hales?" Callie asked, her voice full of concern.

"Cal, I'm so sorry for earlier. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. I was wrong, can you forgive me?"

"Yeah, it's already forgotten. Hales, I can tell something's wrong so, will you please talk to me?" Callie questioned.

"How did I let myself get to this point Callie? Why didn't I listen to everyone when y'all warned me about Connor?" Haley started babbling.

"Haley, why are you bringing this up now? Where's this coming from?"

"Because I just realized the only guy I truly trust with everything in me is Gabe. I don't even trust my dad the way I trust Gabe. I trust Jake, Lucas and Nathan, I do, just not the way I trust Gabe. I trusted Connor with everything I had Callie, and look what he did to me! He betrayed my trust. He took all of that from me. I don't think I can ever trust a guy like that again. You were right earlier when you said Nathan's nothing like Connor. He isn't, and I know that, I've known for a while. But, I still can't trust him like I was stupid enough to do with Connor. I just can't. He's too good for me Callie, he deserves better than some girl with a 4 year old daughter that has tons of issues" Haley answered.

"Why don't you let Nathan be the judge of that?" Callie questioned.

"No. I won't let him get mixed up with someone like me. I won't do that to him. I don't think I can ever trust or love a guy with everything in me again. Even if I wanted to I just don't have the strength to try. I can't put myself through something like Connor put me through again. I just can't" Haley cried.

Callie pulled Haley into her arms and just let her cry knowing that it's what she needed.


End file.
